


Shiro the Hero

by JamieTayl



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Feral Keith, Gay Disaster Shiro (Voltron), Gay Keith (Voltron), Gay Shiro (Voltron), Keith & Shiro (Voltron) are Roommates, M/M, Multi, SHEITH - Freeform, Slow Burn, SuperHero Shiro, Superhero keith, There is a lot of fluff, There will be a happy ending, klance, lance is not evil i promise, shance, shklance - Freeform, villain lance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2021-01-22
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:53:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 49,926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23108038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JamieTayl/pseuds/JamieTayl
Summary: Shiro is a superhero, fighting against crime. The Blue Lion is a notorious villain. When Shiro investigates a series of missing person's reports, will he find the Blue Lion at the end? Or will he find something else, something far more sinister?
Relationships: Keith/Lance (Voltron), Keith/Lance/Shiro (Voltron), Keith/Shiro (Voltron), Lance/Shiro (Voltron)
Comments: 39
Kudos: 130





	1. Chapter 1

Shiro was on the way home when he got the call. The villain Blue Lion had been seen stealing valuables from the wealthy Mr. Velveeto. His informant gave him directions to the mansion. Shiro sighed. He had been looking forward to going home and binging his favorite show. Shiro took his mask out of the bag on the seat beside him and put it on his face. He pushed a button on his car labeled “emergency”. Immediately, his car started making siren sounds and flashing lights. He sped past the other cars and kept going until he got to the mansion. He turned off the lights and the siren and got into the backseat. He changed into his black spandex suit(not his idea) and stepped out of the car. He put his arm into combat mode. The mansion was huge, but there was no time to admire it. He walked past the open gate and to the front door of the house. He couldn’t hear anything, which could be a good or bad sign. He opened the door, which was unlocked. The entry hall was deserted, so he walked past that to a large hall with stairs to his left. He scanned the room carefully, looking for signs of a struggle. He startled when he heard a voice behind him.

“You come here often?” Shiro whirled around. In front of him stood the notorious Blue Lion. Shiro had never met him, but he had heard stories from his friend Keith, who had fought him numerous times. Shiro scanned him for weapons. The Blue Lion wore an elaborate mask with rhinestones, unlike Shiro’s plain one. He wore a crop top and booty shorts in the same shade. Those were questionable fashion choices for battle, Shiro thought. The Blue Lion didn’t appear to be carrying anything except a large sack. Shiro could see jewelry peeking out the top. 

“That doesn’t belong to you,” he told the villain. “Finders keepers.” The blue lion took a step back. Shiro took a step forward. He looked rather fragile, but Shiro had heard how he could fight. “Just hand it over, we don’t have to do this.” The Blue Lion scoffed. “Even if I gave this to you, you will still try to lock me up.” Shiro couldn’t argue with that. He had stolen millions of dollars worth of things. There was no getting out of that. “Although I can’t deny I like me some good handcuffs if you know what I mean.” He winked. Shiro stood still, staring at him in disbelief. They were supposed to be fighting. Before Shiro could move, the Blue Lion ran past him and up the stairs. 

“Hey, wait!” Shiro ran after him, cursing his knees as he went up the stairs. When he reached the next floor, the Blue Lion was almost out of sight. Shiro ran around a corner after him. When he rounded the corner, he saw the other man perched on the windowsill of an open window. Shiro’s eyes widened. This was the second floor. Shiro blinked, and he was gone. He rushed forward to look out the window. Just below, he saw the Blue Lion clinging to the wall, although he couldn’t tell how. “You’re alive,” he said, the relief evident in his voice. The Blue Lion smirked. “Aw, were you worried about me? That’s sweet.” Before Shiro could answer, the Blue Lion was climbing down the wall. “Hey wait, come back here,” Shiro said. The Blue Lion paused. “Uh,” Shiro started. The villain raised an eyebrow. Why were his words failing him? Was this the power of the Blue Lion? “Are you trying to ask me out, big guy?” Shiro stood still again, dumbstruck. He opened his mouth and only succeeded in making unintelligible noises. The Blue Lion giggled, then crawled down the rest of the wall. Shiro looked around himself wildly. If he ran downstairs and then outside, he wouldn’t make it in time. He looked at the ground far below, doubtfully. The Blue Lion waved at him. Shiro knew he had to uphold justice, no matter the cost. He climbed on the window ledge. The Blue Lion was yelling something at him, but he couldn’t hear over the rushing of blood in his ears. He focused on the position of the Blue Lion and jumped. 

Shiro woke up to blinding fluorescent lights. He lifted his arm to cover his eyes. His mask was still on. He tried to stay calm, going over everything in his head. He had jumped out a second-story window trying to tackle the Blue Lion, and now he was inside. He examined his surroundings. The bed was a simple single bed with white sheets. Across from him was a window that showed a hallway. He noticed a noise which previously he had been tuning out. He turned and saw a heart rate monitor. He attempted to move all his limbs. They felt alright, and he wasn’t chained to the bed, so that was a good sign. Shiro sat up and turned so his legs were dangling off the bed. He got up slowly. He was careful not to jostle the tube he now noticed that was connected to his left arm. He also saw a hospital bracelet. He looked closer. “Silicon valley Hospital,” the bracelet said. He saw the tube connected to a saline bag. Next to his bed was a button. Shiro pushed the button to see what would happen. Nothing happened, so Shiro sat down on the bed again. A few minutes later, his door was pushed open by a young woman.

“Hello, sir, it’s good to see you awake. How are you feeling?” she asked.  
“How did I get here?” Shiro asked.  
“You were dropped off by a nice young man. He said he saw you lying on the ground and knew he had to get you to the hospital right away.” Shiro frowned. Nice young man? Did Mr. Velveeto have a son? “What was his name?”  
“He didn’t say.” The doctor brought out a thermometer and handed it to him. “Now, I’m going to need you to put this under your tongue for-”  
“What did he look like?” Shiro interrupted. She frowned.  
“He wanted to remain anonymous.” She pushed the thermometer into his mouth. Shiro took it out immediately. “What was he wearing?” The doctor’s facial expression didn’t change, but there was a murderous look in her eyes. “I don’t remember. Please put the thermometer back.” Shiro reluctantly put the thermometer back. The only person there when he fell was the Blue Lion. He would have regained consciousness within ten minutes without the drugs the hospital was giving him. That meant the person had to be close by. There was no way his enemy would bring him to the hospital, though. Right? The doctor declared he had a normal temperature and proceeded to check his overall healthiness including checking for memory loss or a concussion.

“-you can be released now since you seem to be in good health.” Shiro nodded at her, pretending he had been listening. A nurse came to give him back his belongings. Shiro called Keith to pick him up from the hospital. Shiro went outside and discovered that it was nighttime. Keith pulled up beside him on his red motorbike.

“Hey buddy,” he said to Keith. Keith ran towards him and hugged him tightly. Shiro’s eyebrows raised. Keith wasn’t usually the cuddly type. “You idiot,” Keith said, muffled from Shiro’s shirt,” what happened?” Keith released him and took a step back. Shiro thought back to when he jumped from the window.  
“I really wanted to catch him, so I jumped out the second-story window. It knocked me out. I guess I wasn’t thinking.” Keith glared up at him. “Don’t do that again.” Keith got back on his bike. Shiro followed him. They both put on their helmets, and then they were off. Keith took his arm and dragged him to their apartment as if he were a child. Keith pushed him back onto their sofa. “Idiot.” Keith left the room. He returned with some soup and a mug of hot chocolate. Shiro accepted gratefully. Keith stared at him while he ate. Shiro was used to Keith’s odd behaviors, so he ignored it. Shiro finished his soup and placed the empty bowl on the coffee table. Keith was still scowling at him. Shiro reached out and patted his head. Keith jerked away from him. Shiro sighed. Keith may have been cuddly earlier, but now he didn’t want to be touched. He guessed that was to be expected since there was no longer a crisis. Shiro switched on his favorite show. Gradually throughout the episode, Keith shifted closer to him. Eventually, Keith’s thigh touched his. Shiro held perfectly still so he wouldn’t scare him off. Shiro pretended he was completely focused on the show. He felt Keith’s headrest on his shoulder. The corners of Shiro's mouth twitched upwards. At some point, Shiro must have fallen asleep, because he awoke to daylight streaming through the curtains. “I brought your car home,” Keith said. Shiro followed the direction of the voice. Keith was perched on the armrest of the couch, looking at his phone. “Thanks.” Shiro lamented that he had fallen asleep. He hadn’t gotten to enjoy Keith being next to him. “Just cuz your a superhero doesn’t mean you can fly. Don’t jump out of windows.” Shiro smiled at him. He did care. “And wipe that stupid look off your face.” Shiro immediately put on a poker face. Shiro pulled his phone out of his pocket to check the time. 9:30. Wait, 9:30? “Keith, don’t you have work?” Shiro looked at Keith, who was now lying on top of the back of the sofa. “I took off today.” Shiro frowned. “And when did you decide to do that, exactly?” Keith looked up from his phone. “Yesterday.” Shiro sighed. “You know, you didn’t have to do that.” Keith didn’t answer. Shiro shifted closer so he could look at the screen. Keith was playing some sort of flower growing game, not the sort of thing Shiro would expect him to like. Keith interrupted the silence. “What do you think of the Blue Lion?” Shiro went rigid in his seat. He remembered how the Blue Lion had caught him off guard with flirting and escaped down the side of the building. “He’s...tricky.” Keith always complained to Shiro after fighting with the Blue Lion. Shiro thought it was funny how annoyed Keith got, but he wasn’t going to tell Keith that. “Doesn’t he get on your nerves?” Keith said. Shiro smirked. “Not as much as he gets on yours, obviously.” Keith took a deep breath in. “He is SO annoying, Shiro. And what kind of person wears such a stupid outfit? And he thinks MY outfit is stupid. He wears rhinestones on his mask. Rhinestones, Shiro.” Keith continued to ramble about how horrible the Blue Lion was. “I think he was the one who brought me to the hospital,” Shiro interrupted. Keith immediately went quiet. He slowly turned to face Shiro. “You what now.” Shiro swallowed. “Well, see, the logistics make sense-”  
“He’s a criminal, Shiro! It’s his fault you’re hurt in the first place.” Keith slid off the couch and walked away from him. Shiro thought he was wrong. It was his fault for jumping out the window without a plan. Shiro sighed. He texted Keith he was going for a walk and left the apartment. It was a nice day out. Shiro walked into an abandoned warehouse building and walked down the stairs and into the basement. He was about to open the secret door to his lair when he heard a familiar voice behind him. “Hey there, handsome.” Shiro stood still, his hand already outstretched to open the door. He turned and saw the person he was hoping not to see. The Blue Lion stood in front of him, only a few feet away from his secret lair. Shiro sighed. The Blue Lion now wore a blue, off the shoulder sweater and jeans. The sweater was not doing good things for Shiro's concentration. His eyes kept straying from his face to his shoulder. What did one do in this situation? “Hey,” Shiro said in a wheezy voice. The Blue Lion frowned. “You feeling okay, big guy? That was quite a fall yesterday.” This was not a normal conversation for a superhero and a villain to be having, especially during a fight. Shiro squared his shoulders. “You stole from Mr. Velveeto. That’s a crime. Come with me willingly, or I will be forced to fight you,” he said, forcing himself to keep his eyes on his face. “Are you homophobic?” the Blue Lion asked him. Shiro didn’t respond for a second, distracted. “What, no, I’m not- I mean, I don’t care what your sexuality is, I care about your crimes.” The Blue Lion put his hands on his hips. His sweater rode up, revealing a sliver of his stomach. Shiro focused very hard on his face. “Did you know Mr. Velveeto had donated thousands of dollars to conversion camps?” Shiro was unsure if that was true. “I don’t support that,” Shiro said carefully,” but it’s still a crime to steal.” The Blue Lion didn’t appear to be carrying any weapons, like last time. Shiro took a few steps forward until he was right in front of the villain. “I’m gonna donate the money to gay charities,” the Blue Lion informed him. Shiro calculated his movement, then swung a leg out to trip him. The Blue Lion jumped, evading his kick. Shiro swung his arm straight for his torso. The Blue Lion easily bent out the way. Shiro swung with his other arm, grabbing the villain and pulling him to Shiro’s chest. A thought suddenly occurred to Shiro. He wasn’t wearing his mask. He held the Blue Lion firmly against him. He kept wiggling, but that just made him hold on tighter. Finally, he slumped into Shiro’s grasp, defeated. He turned his head up to look at Shiro. “So, what are you going to do to me now that you've caught me?” he winked. Shiro felt his face grow warm. Shiro shifted his grasp so he was holding him only with one arm, then brought a pair of handcuffs out of his jacket. “Ooh, kinky,” the Blue Lion said, smirking up at him. Shiro opened his mouth, but couldn’t think of anything to say. He giggled, then twisted out of Shiro’s grasp and jumped a few feet away, causing his sweater to fly up. Shiro’s brain seemed to go through a restart. He pushed the button on his arm to enable combat mode. Shiro could blame the drugs at the hospital for his slow brain. His arm glowed purple. “So, I take it you’re feeling okay, then?” the Blue Lion said. Shiro didn’t answer. Talking with him had been a mistake, it only served to distract him. Shiro had underestimated him. It was actually a great battle tactic to distract him with talking. And flirting. “I’ll just go, then.” The blue lion whirled around and sprinted full speed up the stairs. No way, Shiro was not going to let this happen again. He ran after him, making sure not to lose sight of him. Shiro got to the first floor in time to see him run out of the front door of the warehouse. Shiro rushed outside, but he was nowhere in sight. He sighed. Not only had he lost a second time in a row, his enemy now knew his face and where his secret headquarters were. He needed to get his act together.


	2. chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No Shance this chapter, but some plot. I've got more planned. Not to fear, there will be shance in the future.

Shiro went into his secret headquarters. He found Hunk and Pidge in the lab. Electronic parts surrounded them on the floor. Pidge was animatedly talking about something, waving a part in the air. Pidge and Hunk seemed normal, so Shiro assumed they hadn't looked at the security cameras in the past ten minutes. “Hey guys,” Shiro said. They looked up. Hunk stood and put his hands on his hips.

“What were you thinking, Shiro?”. Shiro felt ashamed. There was nothing like Hunk’s ‘I’m disappointed in you’ look. 

“Yeah, that was really fucking stupid, Shiro,” Pidge chimed in. Shiro turned to her. 

“Language,” he said. She stuck her tongue out at him. Pidge had installed a camera in his suit. It didn’t have audio, because he thought that would be too invasive. Pidge and Hunk had both resisted against that, but he was firm in his decision. He was now very glad he had insisted. Pidge didn’t need to be exposed to what the Blue Lion had been saying to him. And she didn’t need to be exposed to that bare midriff and those nice thighs, either, but that was unavoidable with the video surveillance. Shiro was getting slightly distracted thinking about those thighs. 

“Shiro,” Hunk said. 

Shiro started. “Huh?”. 

“I’ve been talking to you. What were you thinking about?”. Shiro fumbled for a response. 

“Uh...battle tactics. We need to figure out how we are going to defeat the Blue Lion.” 

Hunk nodded seriously. “He makes people let their guard down. He talks to them like a friend, distracts them, and then,” Hunk paused,” he strikes!” 

Pidge snorted. “His combat skills are mediocre at best. What he’s good at is running away.” Shiro frowned. The Blue Lion had expertly evaded his attacks earlier. Shiro didn’t know if he could throw a punch well, but he was good in a fight. 

“You shouldn’t underestimate him,” Shiro chastised Pidge. “I think you should view the security footage from before I walked in.” Pidge raised an eyebrow. Shiro looked at her, offering no further explanation. Pidge pulled up the footage and squawked when she saw the Blue Lion on screen. Pidge and Hunk watched the footage.

“Why didn’t you tell us he was here the second you came in?” Pidge demanded. 

Shiro sighed. “I might still have some pain meds in my system.” Pidge huffed and crossed her arms.

“We’ll have to relocate, now that he knows where we are. What a mess.” 

Hunk watched the video a second time, his eyes slowly widening. “Shiro. Why are you not wearing your mask?”. 

Pidge jolted. “Oh, Fuck.”

“Language,” Shiro told her.

Pidge glared at him. “Your identity has been revealed! I’m allowed to swear.”

Shiro thought back to when he jumped out the window. The villain had him at his mercy, but Shiro was unharmed. “I was unconscious after I jumped out the window. He must have removed my mask. That's how he knew who I was.” Shiro had another thought. ”Pidge, could you email me a list of charities Mr. Velveeto had donated to? And also send me any updates you have on the location of the Blue Lion. We need to find him and lock him up before he tells anyone anything.” 

Pidge made a disgusted face. “Email? Hell no, I’ll text you.” Shiro nodded. 

“If we put him in prison, won’t he just tell all the prisoners your identity? Should we put him in solitary confinement?,” Hunk asked. 

Shiro hadn’t considered that. “That’s inhumane,” Shiro said. 

“We could keep him in our new base when we move,” Pidge suggested. 

Shiro shook his head. “The police wouldn’t let us keep him.”

Pidge smirked. “They don’t have to know.”  
Shiro frowned. He hoped Pidge would outgrow her tendency towards illegal activities. “Nothing illegal allowed. And that’s final. Figure something out.” He left the building warily. He doubted the Blue Lion would hang around, but it didn’t hurt to be cautious. Pidge would question his request about the charities later, but he wanted to know. 

Shiro walked home. When he stepped through the door, he was pleasantly surprised to smell something good. Keith didn’t usually cook, and when he did, it was always meat without any seasoning so he could eat it with his hands. Shiro did not enjoy that. Keith had always been slightly feral. Shiro walked into the kitchen to find Keith cooking a piece of steak. No surprises there. However, this time he could smell spices and see that it had been marinated. “I’m home,” Shiro said from behind him. 

Keith squeaked. He turned around, spoon in hand. “Don’t sneak up on me like that,” Keith waved his spoon at Shiro threateningly. 

Shiro smiled. “That smells good. What made you decide to use seasoning?” 

Keith turned back to the steak. He lowered his head to look at it, causing his bangs to fall into his face. “I thought you would like it. You always make your steaks with marinades.” Keith prodded the steak with the spoon. Shiro walked up behind him and patted him on the back. Keith grunted. Shiro couldn’t tell if that was a good sign or not. Keith didn’t shrug his hand off, so he took it as a good sign. Keith turned off the stove and plopped the steaks onto plates. Keith picked up his steak with his hands and bit into it. Shiro winced. Marinade dripped down his fingers. Shiro ignored that and got a knife and fork out for himself to eat his steak like a normal person. He wished Keith made a side dish, but he never did. Shiro ate his steak and washed the dishes, purposely not looking at Keith, who had marinade all over his hands and face. Maybe he could get Keith into corn dogs. Shiro sat on the couch and turned on the TV. He switched it to a nature show Keith liked. Keith sat on the couch next to him, his legs curled beneath him. His hands and face were now marinade-free. Keith stared at the screen, entranced by some hippos swimming underwater. Shiro went from watching the screen to watching Keith. The narrator gave facts about hippos, to which Keith nodded. He looked disappointed when the screen switched to focus on some gazelles. Ten minutes later, the narrator switched to the hippos again. Keith perked up, looking interested again. Then the screen focused on a baby hippo. Keith’s eyes brightened, and he smiled. Shiro felt himself smiling in return. Maybe he would take Keith to the zoo. He shook his head. He didn’t have time for that. He needed to track down the Blue Lion. Shiro’s phone pinged. He took it out to look. Pidge had texted him a list of all the places Mr. Velveeto donated to regularly. They included gay conversion camps, as well as churches that Shiro knew were famous for speaking out against homosexuality. Shiro sighed. He wished the Blue Lion had lied to him, that Shiro wasn’t protecting such a disgusting man. “What’s wrong,” Keith asked. Shiro looked up to see Keith looking at him, concerned. “The man I was trying to help yesterday donated to a bunch of gay conversion camps and other homophobic places.” Keith went from concern to anger in less than a second. “What an ass. Don’t help him again, just leave it to the police.” Shiro would have agreed, but when a villain with powers was involved, he needed to be there for the public. “When a villain is involved, I need to help.” Keith nodded but kept his eyes on the screen. Shiro sighed. He thought about telling Keith that the Blue Lion was aware of his identity, but decided against it. He had known Keith for a long time now. They met in high school. Keith was a troublemaker, while Shiro was the golden boy. The school principal saw an opportunity and decided shiro would be his school mentor. Keith was closed off and got feisty when Shiro tried to befriend him. After a few months, Shiro convinced Keith to come to dinner after mentioning he had a cat. Keith ignored him, his mother, and his grandmother in favor of petting the cat all evening. After that, it was easy to get Keith to come over. Shiro started helping Keith with his homework. Keith let him see his sketchbook, where Keith had drawn a few pictures of his cat. Keith invited him to dinner at his house after that, and they grew closer. Shiro noticed that Keith’s mother was never home, but Keith never mentioned her so Shiro didn’t either. When Keith was 15, his father passed away. He bounced around the foster system until he aged out, which was when Shiro invited Keith to live with him in the apartment. Shiro could confidently say that Keith was his best friend. Before Keith, he was good friends with Matt, but there was just something different about Keith. Something about their friendship was different than anything he had had previously. With all this thinking about his past, Shiro remembered he hadn't called his family in a while. Shiro turned to Keith. 

“I’m going to facetime my mom, do you want to join me?” Keith thought for a moment. 

“Okay.” Keith shut off the TV and moved closer to Shiro so he would be seen on screen. His mom answered and smiled widely when she saw both Shiro and Keith on the screen. 

“Keith! I haven't seen you in forever. Takashi, you need to call more often. How have you two been? One minute, Keith, I know who you want to see.” They waited as Shiro’s mom walked to her living room. She tilted the camera down so the cat was in view. 

“Here she is,” Shiro’s mom said. Shiro turned to see Keith grinning at the screen.  
“Snail! Come here, girl.” Snail, the cat, lifted her fluffy gray head to peer at the talking screen suspiciously. Shiro got to pick her name when he was 8. Shiro’s mom held it closer so she could sniff it. Keith lifted his hand over his mouth as he giggled at her. Shiro thought he would die from the cuteness.

“What’s all this racket?” said a voice off-screen. The view changed so Shiro’s grandmother was in view.

“Ah, Takashi. Keith. Good to see you. Why haven't you called? You need to come over more often. I won’t live forever, you know.” Shiro smiled, happy to see his grandmother again. 

“Hi, Obaasan. I missed you.” 

“Hmph.” She sat on the couch. Snail curled up in her lap.

“I was slightly injured on a mission,” Shiro started. 

“What do you mean, Taka-” his mother started to say.

“I knew it! I knew this superhero business was a bad thing. You should have listened to me when I told you to become a doctor!” his grandmother interjected. He heard Keith huff a tiny laugh next to him. He looked at Keith with a ‘how could you laugh at my suffering’ look.

“-you would be safer, and still helping people, and get paid so well,” his grandmother continued. Shiro sighed. 

“Obaasan, we’ve talked about this. This is what I want to do with my life.” She sniffed at him. Shiro’s mom sat down next to her. 

“How are you feeling?” she asked. Shiro considered. He had a little bit of a headache, but that may be due to his grandmother.

“I’m okay, just a minor concussion”.

“Stay safe, Takashi. I worry about you, you know.” Shiro nodded. He would do his best. They wouldn’t let him hang up until he promised to visit them soon. He pulled out his phone to check his email. He had an angry email from Mr. Velveeto, demanding an explanation for why his wife’s jewelry was still missing. Shiro sent an email back which he hoped was reassuring, explaining that they were on the trail of the Blue Lion and the jewelry would be returned as soon as possible. He saw he had a text from Pidge with details about a job. She had some information about a big drug deal happening tonight. She said it may be connected to villain activity. Shiro turned to Keith, who was playing with his phone. 

“Where did you put my mask?”. Keith looked up and frowned.

“You’re not thinking of working today, are you? You have a concussion.” Shiro felt his head pounding. 

“I feel fine,” he lied. Keith didn’t look convinced, but started playing with his phone again. 

“It’s in your bedroom, on the dresser.” Shiro went to his bedroom and put on his mask. The Blue Lion may know his identity, but that didn’t mean Shiro could stop doing his job. Crime stops for no man. It was time to get some drug dealers.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro investigates the drug deal. Then, he investigates a string of mysterious disappearances.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not happy with this chapter so if you have any suggestions to improve it, please let me know! Also, I made a mistake last chapter when I said Keith wasn't a superhero. He is. All comments are welcome :)

Shiro parked his car a block away from the abandoned warehouse. It was a gloomy gray, and most of the windows were broken. Cigarette butts littered the pavement. Shiro slowly circled the building, sticking to the shadows. He needed to see if he could get any information before interfering. Two cars pulled up in the back lot, a sleek black car and a beat-up Saturn. A man in a grey suit stepped out of the first car; a woman in casual wear stepped out of the second. Shiro kept his breathing quiet. The woman took a wad of cash out of her pocket and handed it to the man. He counted it. 

The man spoke, his voice deep and gravelly. “This wasn’t the amount we agreed on.” 

The woman answered. “No one else will pay this highly. Take it or leave it.” 

There was a pause. The man spoke. “Fine, but my boss won’t be happy.” Shiro saw the man hand the woman a small bag.

It was time for Shiro to intervene. He stepped out from his hiding place. “What’s going on here,” he said, his voice firm. 

They froze for a moment, staring at him, then bolted in different directions. Shiro made a split-second decision to follow the man. While running after the man, he berated himself for not following the woman. She was the one holding the drugs. He would only have circumstantial evidence if the man didn’t admit to his crime. It didn’t matter anyway, because a judge would always believe a hero over a criminal. Shiro chased the man down narrow side streets until he rounded a corner into an alleyway, which ended abruptly in a wall. Shiro heard fast footsteps behind him. He whipped around and was confronted with the Blue Lion. He wore a long black sleeved shirt and leggings, as opposed to his usual blue, but his mask was the same as ever. Shiro activated combat mode on his arm, which caused it to glow purple and emit intense heat, capable of giving third-degree burns with a single touch. 

The Blue Lion took a step back. “H-hey now, I’m chasing this man too,” he said, his voice wavering. 

Shiro looked between the man and the Blue Lion. Though the Blue Lion was good at dodging in a fight, he didn’t carry a weapon and didn’t seem to be an immediate threat. Shiro looked back towards the man. The man looked from side to side, as if contemplating trying to scale the walls.  
“Who do you work for,” Shiro said in a deep, commanding voice. 

“I...I don’t work for anyone,” the man stammered. 

Shiro turned, walking closer to the man. Shiro shoved him against the wall and put his glowing hand close to the man’s neck, almost touching. Beads of sweat raced down the man's face. 

“I said, Who. Do. You. Work. For.”. 

The man began to breathe shallowly. “Please, he’ll hurt me if I tell you! Have some mercy!” the man begged.

“I’ll be the one hurting you if you don’t talk,” Shiro said. 

The man spoke, his voice ragged. “Okay, okay, I'll talk. His name is Sendak. Please don’t hurt me.”

“Where is he?” Shiro spat.

“I don’t know! I swear I don’t know! I’ve never even met him, I just meet other people who work for him!”. 

Shiro switched his arm to normal mode. As he thought, this drug deal was connected to Galra activity. This information could be vital. “Where do you meet these people?”

“I meet them on union street! It’s not far from here.” Shiro pulled handcuffs out and handcuffed the man, then released his hold. The man crumpled to the ground. Shiro turned, looking at the Blue Lion. The Blue Lion stayed perfectly still as if that would help him blend into his surroundings. Shiro glanced back to where the man was, then back at the Blue Lion. “I don’t have time for you. Leave.” 

The Blue Lion didn’t hesitate to turn tail and run. He didn’t think that would actually work. Shiro took hold of the man's arm and heaved him to his feet. The police weren't going to be happy with how he threatened the man, but he got results. What worried him was the presence of the Blue Lion. He said he was also chasing the man, but Shiro had no way of knowing if that was true. The Blue Lion could have a connection to the Galra, which would make catching him even more critical. Shiro brought the man to the police station and reported what happened. The police didn’t even give him a warning when he mentioned threatening the man; one perk of being a hero was that the police didn’t care when he broke the rules a little. He sent Pidge an update on what happened, although she had been observing through the cam in his suit. Reflecting on what he had done, Shiro didn’t think the threat was unwarranted. The Galra were cruel and he needed to get information by any means necessary. Shiro investigated union street. It was a simple deserted alleyway/ He let Pidge know she needed to monitor this street. On the way home, Shiro stopped by the grocery store. He got the essentials, ramen, steak, and cereal, along with some corn dogs as an afterthought. When he got home, he attempted to enter the house quietly so he didn’t disturb Keith's sleep. Keith had incredible hearing. He sat down the groceries, closed the door behind him and locked it, and turned around to pick up the groceries again. He started when he saw two eyes looking back at him. He relaxed when he realized it was Keith sitting on the couch in the dark. “What are you doing still up?” Shiro asked. Shiro flicked the light switch. 

Keith covered his eyes to block out the light. “I was waiting for you in case I had to pick you up from the hospital again.” 

Shiro immediately felt guilty. Who did he think he was, jumping out of a window? His superpower was strength, not flying, or climbing walls like the Blue Lion. Speaking of the Blue Lion, he had a few questions. “Keith, did you know the Blue Lion can climb walls?”. 

Keith’s face went from grumpy to grumpier. “Yep.” Shiro looked at him, hoping for more information. “I dunno how he does it. Maybe he sticks, like spiderman.” 

Shiro hummed thoughtfully. Shiro’s superpower was strength, so human/animal hybrids weren't his area of expertise. “You’re good at climbing,” Shiro remarked. He wasn’t sure if it was a superpower or not. Keith himself didn’t know if he was superhuman or an animal hybrid. It was true that Keith acted slightly feral, but that could just be his personality. 

Keith looked annoyed. “I’m good at climbing trees and fences, not straight up walls”. 

Shiro wondered what other powers the Blue Lion was hiding. “What else can he do?” Shiro asked.

“He’s fast.” 

Keith himself was fast, so Shiro knew he wasn’t kidding.  
Keith helped Shiro put away the groceries. Shiro insisted it was unnecessary since there were so few items, but Keith just grabbed the steak and put it in the fridge. Shiro showed Keith the corn dogs. Keith took the box and held it, examining the cover. He seemed interested, so Shiro counted it as a win. Keith put it in the fridge but informed Shiro he would try one tomorrow. 

The following morning, Shiro went about his day like normal. He got up early, ate a bowl of cereal, and went for a run in a nearby park. There were picnic tables beneath shady oak trees, a pond with duck, and a beaten-down dirt trail. Shiro liked the tranquility of the place; It was where he went to de-stress. He ran along the path, thinking. The Blue Lion knew his identity and had had time to tell others. Shiro needed to make capturing him a top priority. Shiro was enjoying his jog, feeling refreshed, when he started to feel anxious. He slowed down, glancing behind him. He saw a mother pushing a stroller and some kids by the pond, feeding the ducks. Nothing unusual. He continued his run, pushing himself to go faster. When he started panting, he sat on a bench to take a break, looking out at the pond. He followed the ducks with his eyes, admiring how they glided across the water. 

He heard someone sit next to him. He turned to look and almost fell off the bench. It was none other than the Blue Lion. “Hey there,” the Blue Lion said, ”I’m not supposed to talk to you, but I thought I’d be nice and let you know someone’s been following you. Even though you were super rude to me yesterday.”

“Is it you who’s following me?” Shiro said. 

The Blue Lion smiled. “Yes, but also someone else. Creepy looking dude in a suit.” 

Shiro felt a chill go down his spine. Was he really being followed? Or was it a ploy to make him trust the Blue Lion? It would make sense that the Blue Lion had a vendetta against him since Shiro was trying to stop him. Shiro observed the Blue Lion’s face. Nothing indicated he was lying, but Shiro couldn’t know for sure. For the first time, Shiro noticed the Blue Lion’s eyes were blue. Perhaps that’s where he got his name. He had freckles across the bridge of his nose that the mask didn’t quite cover. He was right there. Shiro should grab him right now. Shiro remembered he told the Blue Lion he didn’t have time for him yesterday. “I’m sorry about last night,” Shiro said. Why was he apologizing? The Blue Lion was a villain, a criminal. Shiro had every right to tell him to get lost. 

The Blue Lion rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, you were being kind of scary.” Shiro felt embarrassed. He was supposed to be upholding the law, but he threatened a man with a weapon. Not only that, but an actual villain thought he was scary because of it. 

“Have you told anyone my identity?”, Shiro asked, dreading the answer. The Blue Lion shook his head. He didn’t know if that was the truth or not. He should see if he could learn more. “Why were you chasing that man yesterday?”. Shiro tried to keep his tone and body language friendly.

The Blue Lion winked. “Wouldn’t you like to know.” The Blue Lion hopped off the bench and raced away. Shiro stood, preparing to run after him, but the Blue Lion was already halfway across the park. Keith was right, he really was fast. He should have grabbed him when he had the chance, dammit. He texted Pidge that he thought he was being followed. Shiro regretfully told her the Blue Lion had evaded him yet again. He let her know the details of the conversation they had. Pidge told him to be on his guard, in case the Blue Lion or someone else was following him. 

Shiro went home feeling uneasy. He checked his phone for updates from Pidge about any jobs in the area but was disappointed. All he had was another angry email from Mr. Velveeto. The apartment felt empty without Keith. Keith worked both as a superhero and as a mechanic. Shiro was a full-time hero, so he was often left to his own devices during the day when there were no available jobs. Shiro made himself some ramen and sat down in front of the TV to watch a new show on Netflix. He was halfway through the second episode when he got a text from Pidge. There were no updates on the Galra or the Blue Lion, but Pidge reported that the number of people going missing was escalating. Another reason Shiro hated the Galra. He had first-hand experience of what happened to those missing people. 

A few years ago, Shiro was studying at the garrison to become an astronaut. It was always his dream to go to space. He just took his midterms. He was confident he did well on them. Shiro was going home for winter break. He was driving home, looking forward to his mother’s Christmas cake. She had tried to teach Shiro to bake in the past, but he was hopeless at it. He stopped at a gas station to fill up his tank. He was looking at the gas prices, shaking his head at the rise in prices, when another car pulled in. It was a sleek black car with tinted windows. Shiro was going to write it off as a rich person’s car when he saw it had no license plate. Now slightly nervous, Shiro put the nozzle into his gas tank, willing it to go faster. The car door opened. Out of the corner of his eye, Shiro saw a man. He risked a nervous glance, then froze. The man was wearing all black and on his head was a ski mask. Shiro took the nozzle out of his car immediately, tossing it away from himself. He shut the gas tank and nervously circled around his car. The other car door opened, and four more men got out. At this point, Shiro was panicking. He might be strong, but he couldn’t fight that many people at once. He looked around wildly for something to help him but found nothing. The men all rushed him at once. They grabbed him and dragged him to their car, and shoved him in the trunk. They brought him to a lab, a sterile environment with white walls, and the smell of antiseptic. They strapped him to a table and that was the beginning of a nightmare that would last an entire year. He won’t go into detail about what happened there, all he will say is he was an unwilling test subject. One day, a man entered his room and freed him from his restraints. It was when they were outside the building when the alarm was raised. The man told him to run and not look back, and that’s what Shiro did. 

Shiro looked at the information Pidge sent him. The missing people were all different ages and ethnicities. Some of the victims knew each other, but others didn’t. Their only clue was that about half of the victims were superhuman and the other half were human. None of the victims were partially superhuman, which Shiro found suspicious. Shiro himself was fully superhuman since both of his parents were, but people who were half superhuman or quarter superhuman were common. Shiro set his phone down. He was going to have to investigate the most recent victim’s disappearance. She sent him the location and time of all the disappearances as well as the addresses of the victims. Shiro stared at his phone in disbelief. He texted Pidge back, asking her why the police weren’t taking care of this. She told him the police already investigated and thought it was connected to villain activity. Shiro sighed. He wasn’t cut out to be a kidnapping investigator. 

Shiro reluctantly got off his couch and changed into his costume. He drove to the most recent victims’ home, Larry Berbette. His home was a two-story suburban with a manicured lawn and rose bushes. He could see cheery yellow curtains in the windows. Shiro walked up the small stone pathway to the door. He rang the doorbell and waited. A few minutes later, the door opened to reveal a woman Shiro guessed to be in her early forties. She had smile lines etched into her face, but she wasn’t smiling now. Shiro felt like an idiot, standing there in a spandex suit and a mask. “Hello, Mrs. Berbette,” he said,''I'm the hero Atlas. I came to investigate the disappearance of your husband.” 

The woman’s facial expression didn’t change, but Shiro noticed the dark circles under her. “Call me Sophia. Please come inside.” Sophia opened the door wider and gestured behind her. Shiro walked into the house wishing he was anywhere but here. The living room was nice. It had a sofa with multiple throw pillows and blankets and a squishy armchair. There was a grand piano in the corner and pictures of a happy family hung on the walls. It felt wrong. Shiro heard soft footsteps and looked up to see a little girl, no older than ten. She took one look at Shiro and then went back upstairs. Sophia offered Shiro a drink, but he declined. She sat in the armchair, so Shiro sat on the couch.  
“What do you want to know,” Sophia asked. Shiro had never investigated a disappearance before, but he had seen it on TV. “Do you know anyone who would want to harm your husband?” Shiro asked. He tried to keep his tone even and keep his body language open and unthreatening. Perhaps Larry knew one of the Galra. 

She looked down at her lap and shook her head. “Larry is a good man. He volunteers for the shelter in his free time and raises money for charity. He’s the perfect husband, the perfect father,” her voice broke off. Shiro could see tears streaking down her face, but he didn’t comment. He knew Larry worked as a therapist and was last seen leaving his workplace. He never made it home. A thought occurred to him. All the victims had been human, but he didn’t know anything about the spouses. “Are you a superhuman?”. 

She nodded. “I’m a quarter superhuman. Is that relevant to the case?”, she asked.

Shiro shrugged. “Any information is helpful.” Shiro spent the rest of the day visiting the families of the victims. Some of their spouses were superhuman, some human, and some partial, so that was a dead end. Shiro was just trying to find a connection. He knew it was the Galra, but why were they kidnapping people? Shiro knew they were using people as test subjects, but for what? Shiro was going to find out.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance, sitting in a tree...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know if you have any suggestions to improve my writing or any ideas for the story!

The next day was Saturday so Shiro decided to be lazy and stay on the couch all day. He deserved it after all his hard work interviewing the families of missing people. His plan was thwarted when Pidge texted him the location of their new base and told him to go there. He groaned and dragged himself off the couch. Shiro went out of his way, turning multiple times in different directions so anyone following him would lose his trail. Shiro pulled up in front of a sleek apartment building. Confused, he sent Pidge a text asking if he got the wrong address. She said he was in the right place and told him the apartment number. Shiro went into the building and up the elevator. He walked until he got to the door and knocked. He heard banging noises and clanking, and then the door opened to reveal Hunk, who was in his pajamas. Shiro stepped into the room and looked around. It was a standard apartment living room, with a small couch, coffee table, and TV. Metal parts were spread over the coffee table. Pidge was sitting on the floor in the middle of a nest of wires, looking between multiple screens, typing furiously. Shiro was surprised to see Keith sitting on the couch. Shiro would have given Keith a ride if he had known he would be here. Shiro sat beside him. “Why are we in an apartment,” Shiro asked. Hunk answered. “There's only two abandoned warehouses in town, the one we used to have our base in and the one with drug deals behind it, so we decided to work in my apartment instead.” Shiro looked at Keith. Keith usually did solo missions and didn’t physically go to the base. “I gathered you here so we could talk about what we know about the Galra and figure out what we should do about them,” Pidge said. 

“The whole only kidnapping humans and superhumans is suspicious. Why no part superhumans? I know they did experiments on Shiro- oh oops, sorry Shiro,” Hunk said. 

Shiro winced, then gave him a half smile. “It’s okay, Hunk. Say what you were going to say.” 

“Well, I was thinking, they might be doing experiments on all the other superhumans they take. But what are they doing with the humans?”. That was a good point. Shiro understood experimenting on superhumans. He hated it, but he understood. Testing superhumans to see what made them tick wasn’t anything new. However, they were also taking humans, and Shiro didn’t know why. 

Pidge nodded. “There’s got to be some kind of connection. I have to do some more research. What I want to know is why the Blue Lion would tell Shiro he was being followed. It doesn’t make sense to risk Shiro capturing him. If it were a ploy to gain Shiro’s trust, he would have stuck around longer.”

Shiro nodded. Shiro had no idea why the Blue Lion would risk himself like that to help Shiro. The Blue Lion’s style of doing things didn’t seem like the Galra. Shiro had heard of crimes the Blue Lion had committed in the past, mainly robbery and trespassing; nothing violent. And no Galra he had ever seen would be caught dead in those outfits. Shiro thought about his conversation in the park with the Blue Lion. Something was bugging him about it. 

“The other day, in the park, the Blue Lion told me he wasn’t supposed to talk to me. Do you think he meant because he’s a villain and I’m a hero, or someone told him not to?” Shiro said. Everyone went quiet. 

“That could be important,” Keith said. Shiro had forgotten he was there. Keith was now sitting on the couch’s armrest. 

“We need to make catching him a priority since he knows Shiro's identity,” Pidge said. Shiro felt immediate dread as he remembered deciding not to tell Keith his identity was revealed. 

“He WHAT?” Keith yelled. Shiro looked at the ground guiltily. “Shiro, what does she mean by that,” Keith said in a threatening tone. 

“Pidge didn’t tell you why we moved the base, did she?” Shiro said. Keith glared at him. “The Blue Lion figured out my identity and followed me to our base,” Shiro explained. 

“What’s to stop him from following you here, then?” Keith crossed his arms. 

“I turned around a lot on the way here, so I would have lost anyone following me. And even if they figured out the building, they wouldn’t know the apartment.” Shiro gave Keith his best puppy dog eyes. Keith was still glowering at him but didn’t say anything. Shiro should have told him earlier, he knew, but he didn’t want to worry him. Shiro thought about the past few days, trying to think of anything he was missing. He remembered the drug dealer telling him about a street with Galra activity. “Pidge, you got anything on Union street?”.

“No, I’ve been monitoring it and nothing’s happening, just like I thought it would. The Galra know one of them was arrested near there, they're not going to go back.” Shiro thought that would be the case, but he was grasping at straws. Pidge continued typing. 

“How did you know a drug deal was going to happen before it happened?” Shiro asked. They had people call their phone number to report crimes, but the people were usually witnessing the crime being committed. 

“Anonymous tip. They called our number.” Anonymous tips were uncommon in their line of work. Less common was people knowing a crime was going to be committed before it happened. Shiro looked at Pidge, who was looking between all her different screens and typing. He knew she was taking notes, trying to find some sort of pattern. What frustrated him the most is that there seemed like there should be a simple answer. All the superhumans and humans going missing but no partial superhumans seemed like a big clue, but Shiro just couldn’t figure it out. They were taking both animal-human hybrids and those with superpowers, so that wasn’t in their criteria.

“I wonder if the drug deals are connected,” Hunk said. They continued discussing everything they knew. 

Pidge decided they were going to get anywhere so the meeting was adjourned. Shiro approached Keith, who was avoiding his gaze. “Hey, buddy. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I didn’t want you to worry about me.” Keith didn’t say anything. Shiro decided to go for the tried and true method. “I’ll take you out to lunch as an apology.” Keith nodded, already standing up. Shiro smirked. There was nothing Keith loved more than food. Shiro brought Keith to his favorite fast food place, McDiddy’s. They sat outside at a white plastic table with a green and blue umbrella. Shiro got Keith a burger, fries, and a milkshake. Shiro had the same, minus the milkshake. Keith still wasn’t saying anything to him. Keith wasn’t generally a chatty person, but Shiro was worried he was still angry. “Did you try a corndog yet,” Shiro asked. He hoped Keith would be receptive to a food-related topic. 

“Yup, I finished the box.” Shiro’s eyes widened and his jaw actually dropped. It was a pack of twelve corndogs. He had bought that what, two days ago? Keith must have seen Shiro's look of disbelief because he chuckled. “I’m kidding.” Shiro sighed in relief. “I left one for you”. Shiro thought he was going to go into shock. Eleven corn dogs in two days. Shiro vowed he would never buy corn dogs again. Shiro wondered what Keith ate when he wasn’t home. He knew a way to get Keith to eat a healthy meal. “Keith, do you want to visit mom and Obaasan for dinner?” 

Keith looked up from his almost empty plate. “Okay.” That was Keith's version of an enthusiastic yes. Shiro texted his mom that he was coming over for dinner tonight with Keith. She said she was looking forward to it. Keith waited impatiently while Shiro finished his food. Shiro was about to stand up and get going when his phone started ringing. Pidge informed Shiro that she got another anonymous tip about a drug deal tonight. She needed Shiro to follow the Galra without revealing himself. “It might be a trap. Be careful,” Pidge warned. Shiro sighed. He told Keith what Pidge said and texted his mom he couldn’t go home for dinner after all. 

“I wanna go with you this time,” Keith said, ”to keep you out of trouble”. 

Shiro raised his eyebrows. He wasn’t going to refuse help when it was offered. “Alright, sounds good.” Shiro was looking forward to this mission now. It would be fun to be able to spend time with Keith when he was working as a superhero. Shiro and Keith went home to spend the time before their mission. Keith went off to his room. Shiro thought about going for a jog or lifting some weights, but he didn’t want to tire himself out before the mission. He ended up on the couch again, watching a show on Netflix. The Galra were kidnapping more and more people. He wanted to help, but he felt like they were working so slowly. Shiro remembered the pain of being in that place, and he didn’t want to leave anyone in there any longer than they had to. He hated thinking about it, but his recent missions were all connected to the Galra. At least Keith would be with him this time. As Shiro was finishing his fifth episode, he decided he should start getting ready. He ate the last corndog and went to his room to change into his suit and mask. 

He knocked on Keith’s door. Keith came out wearing his superhero outfit. It was boring but practical. Both of them wore mostly black. Keith wore a black mask, a black t-shirt, black leggings, and red barefoot shoes. Shiro gave him those shoes for his birthday and now Keith wore them all the time. Keith had sewn belt loops on his leggings so he could attach his knife sheath. His hair was up in a short ponytail. Shiro liked seeing Keith with his hair up. Shiro wished he could get away with wearing normal clothes. Most superheroes were worshipped like celebrities, and Shiro was no exception. Pidge and Matt convinced him to wear the Spandex suit, and now it was part of his brand. Shiro remembered Keith insisting he wanted to wear his jeans, but Pidge told him he needed the flexibility of leggings. Shiro wasn’t sure if that was true or if Pidge just liked annoying Keith. Shiro appreciated the leggings nonetheless. Keith’s fans were mainly teenage girls who thought he was cool and edgy. Shiro’s fans were of all ages and genders. According to the news, Shiro had a ‘perfectly sculpted body’. That was a good self-esteem booster, but Shiro tried not to let it go to his head. Most of the news stories about superheroes were thirsty. Shiro could understand, for he too was thirsty. He let Keith walk in front of him so he could sneak quick glances at his backside. He was trying not to be rude or make Keith uncomfortable but damn did that man have a nice ass. They both got into Shiro’s car and drove close to the location. Shiro and Keith kept to the shadows. Shiro was grateful their costumes were black. This time the location was a park. Unlike the park Shiro liked to jog through, this one was a small park in between two buildings with a wall connecting them for the dumpster area. The park had a single play structure and a few trees around the edges. Shiro realized there wasn’t anywhere to hide inside the park, so he stayed in the shadow of one of the buildings. Shiro saw two people walking towards the park from different sides of the street. They must be the criminals. Keith ran straight into the park. Shiro facepalmed. Shiro peeked through his fingers to see what would happen. He saw Keith scuttling up a tree like some kind of demon. Shiro sighed. He knew Keith could handle himself, but he desperately hoped that the criminals didn’t notice him. Shiro wouldn’t be able to hear the criminals at this distance, so he was counting on Keith to follow the Galra one. Everything was going according to plan. Until it wasn’t. Shiro heard yelling, and then two people fell out of the tree Keith had climbed. This was supposed to be a stealth mission. Shiro saw the criminals running away. Shiro ran out from his hiding place and into the park to see what the hell happened. Lying under the tree was Keith. Keith’s limbs were entangled with those of the Blue Lion. They both had leaves and twigs stuck in their hair. Shiro stared at them, uncertain what to do. They both stared back at him, equally as uncertain. Keith recovered first. He put his arms around the Blue Lion and pressed him to the ground. The Blue Lion thrashed in his hold but to no avail. The Blue Lions’ arms were pressed against his sides and he had no way to escape. Shiro kneeled down in front of them. It was hard to handcuff someone when they were struggling so much. “Let go!” the Blue Lion said. “No,” Keith spat. The Blue Lion managed to roll them over, but he was still in Keith’s grasp. Shiro rolled them over so Keith was on top again, so he could talk to the Blue Lion face to face. Shiro draped his body over both of them to hold them still. He was careful not to use his full body weight. They both stopped struggling. “I’m going to need you to answer a few questions,” Shiro said. The Blue Lion pouted at him. Shiro realized his face was incredibly close. “Do you work for the Galra?”. 

The Blue Lions eyes widened. “Wha- no! Why would I call and tell you they’d be here if I worked for them? Oh shoot, I didn’t mean to say that…”. The Blue Lions eyes darted back and forth. 

Shiro felt shock coursing through him. The Blue Lion couldn’t have known they had an anonymous caller unless he was that anonymous caller. The Blue Lion, a villain, was giving them the locations of Galra drug deals. “Why are you helping us?” The Blue Lion wiggled in his hold. Keith grunted. “I’m just a fine upstanding citizen,” said the Blue Lion. 

“Oh shut up,” said Keith. 

“You shut up, emo boy,” he shot back. 

“You’re wearing black right now!” Keith said. Shiro shifted slightly so he could see. The Blue Lion was wearing the same black clothes he wore to the other drug deal. 

“That’s because I’m being sneaky! You just wear it all the time and think you're soooo cool.”

Keith looked ready to kill. “I like black! And you’re still wearing that stupid mask!”. 

Shiro felt he should break up this argument. “You two, stop arguing. Blue Lion, why are you helping us?”. Keith and the Blue Lion stopped arguing, but Shiro could still feel the tension. The Blue Lion stayed silent. Shiro put more weight on them. “Answer the question.” 

“Stop that Shiro, you're crushing us,” Keith said, “oh fuck, I didn’t mean to use your real name.” 

Shiro sighed. “He knows my identity anyway, it doesn’t matter.” 

The Blue Lion smirked at him. “What an idiot, if I didn’t know already you would’ve revealed his identity,” the Blue Lion said.

“Well, you already knew so-” 

Shiro cut Keith off. “Stop arguing. Blue, answer the question. 

The Blue Lion continued smirking at him, inches from his face. “So we’re on a first-name basis now?”. Shiro didn’t know what to say to that. He just thought it would be shorter than saying Blue Lion all the time. 

“Since you know my name, I think it’s only fair I know yours,” Shiro said. 

Blue’s smirk faded to an uncertain smile. “I might tell you, but I’m not telling shadow boy here.” 

Shiro was sure Keith would have kicked Blue if he wasn’t pinned beneath Shiro’s weight. Shiro sighed. “Fine.” It was worth a shot. Shiro maneuvered himself carefully so he could shift Keith off of Blue and scoop Blue into Shiro’s arms. Shiro held him tightly so there was no room for him to squirm away. “Shadow, can you please stand away from us so we can talk privately?”. 

Keith looked like he'd rather choke Blue to death, but he stomped away from them. It wasn’t very loud stomping with Keith’s barefoot shoes, but it was stomping nonetheless. Shiro could feel Blue struggling in his arms, but Shiro wasn’t letting him go this time. It was cute how determined he was. No, bad Shiro. Focus on the mission. 

Shiro waited until Keith had walked away before he repeated his question. Blue slumped in his hold, letting his head rest on Shiro’s shoulder. “You said you want to know my name, but you also said you want to know why I’m helping you. Pick one.” Shiro thought about it. Knowing why Blue was helping them could be important, and could lead them to the Galra. After he answered that question, Shiro could take him to their base, and Pidge could figure out his identity. “Why are you helping us? And why did you show up at the crime scene?”.

Lance looked to the side. He had a nice neck. No, Shiro, focus. He shouldn’t be thinking that way about a villain. Although, Blue had helped them capture that Galra drug dealer by giving them the anonymous tip. He didn’t seem completely villainous.

“I wanted to make sure the Galra got arrested. I didn’t mean for you to see me. The first time I didn’t expect that street to end that soon. And this time shadow boy decided to climb my tree,” Blue said.

So Blue claimed he was also working against the Galra. It could be a scheme by the Galra to get them to trust him and then lead them into a trap.“If you don’t work for the Galra, then who?” Shiro said. 

“I work for myself.” Shiro was starting to think Blue was telling him the truth. He didn’t seem like any Galra Shiro had met. Blue risked being caught the other day by sitting next to him just to warn him he was being followed. Shiro looked in the direction Keith had walked. He saw Keith was halfway in a dumpster, his legs wiggling. He looked back to Blue. Shiro thought about what would happen if he brought Blue to the base. They would interrogate him and then send him to the police. He would spend years in jail. Blue had stolen and trespassed, but he also called to tell them about Galra activity. What was more important to Shiro, upholding the law at all times, or finding the Galra? The Galra had done unspeakable things to Shiro. It was an easy decision. Shiro pressed the button on the side of his suit to stop recording. He knew Pidge would be viewing the footage this time since it was such a dangerous mission.  
He spoke in a hushed voice. “I’ll give you my phone number, call me if you have more information about the Galra. If anyone asks you, you got away, I didn’t let you go.” Shiro released him. Blue looked behind himself nervously, where a little while away Keith was in a dumpster. Blue took out his phone from a pocket in his leggings and opened his contacts app. Shiro typed in his phone number and handed it back. 

“By the way, the name’s Lance.” He winked. Shiro felt his face grow warm. Curse his gay thoughts.

“Run,” he whispered. Lance took off at full speed. He looked as fast as an Olympic runner, if not faster. Shiro remembered he had also climbed down a wall. Was he a superhuman with two powers, or a human/animal hybrid with multiple animal traits? He would ask him the next time they talked. Shiro texted Pidge that the Blue Lion showed up and ruined their mission. Shiro said he thought he might have accidentally pressed the button to stop recording. He looked up and walked towards the dumpster. He grabbed Keith's hips and lifted him out. Keith made a strange chirping noise. Shiro set him down on the grass. “Keith, what the hell are you doing.” 

“What happened to the Blue Lion?”

“He got away. He didn’t give me any information. Why were you in a dumpster?”, Shiro asked. He tried to keep the judgment out of his tone. 

“I thought you had him under control, so I thought I’d just take a quick look. I found some sandwiches in there, and I think there’s half a hot dog under this rag-”

Shiro groaned. He felt queasy. He couldn’t believe his best friend was so gross. Keith was eating actual garbage. “Keith, we have food at home. Clean food. You’re going to get sick if you eat that.” 

“No, I do this all the time. Look, the food is perfectly good. There’s even a banana in there.” Shiro looked over the edge of the dumpster. He looked for a bit of yellow, but he didn’t see it. He scanned around the box until he found it. A completely black banana. There were a few sandwiches, all moldy. “Keith, that’s disgusting. We’re going home and we’re going to have a serious talk about what’s safe to eat. 

Shiro had trouble sleeping that night. He willingly let a villain get away. Lance wasn’t the worst villain he had come across. In fact, now that Shiro thought about, Lance was more like a vigilante. That didn't erase the fact that Shiro had broken the law. He colluded with a criminal. Shiro thought back to when he first met the Blue Lion. Lance was stealing jewelry from a jerk to give the money to charity. He was fast and had good reflexes. He went down the side of the building, and Shiro was an idiot who jumped. Then, he woke up in the hospital. He should ask Lance if he was the one who brought Shiro to the hospital. Something clicked in Shiro’s mind. He had a camera in his suit. He could look at the footage. He was an idiot. He could have done that this whole time and it completely slipped his mind. Shiro got out of his bed and grabbed his suit off the ground. He brought it next to his computer. He clicked on the popup to connect his suit to his computer. He silently thanked Pidge and Hunk for designing a wireless suit camera. Shiro scrolled through the recent footage until he got to when he first met Lance. He watched as Lance ran up the stairs and hopped out the window and Shiro followed him a minute later. Shiro saw the ground hurtling towards himself. He landed on back and rolled over a few times. His front side was on the ground, so the screen was black. Shiro saw himself shifting, and then he was looking at Lance’s face. He looked like he was panicking. After eight minutes, a new face came into view. The person wore a plain black mask similar to Shiro’s. This person held a needle. Shiro watched as they put the needle into his arm and injected something into him. A few minutes later another person in a mask arrived. He saw Lance reaching towards his face. The camera couldn’t see that far, but Shiro assumed he was peeking behind Shiro’s mask. Shiro noted that he should have regained consciousness by this point. They must have injected him with something to keep him unconscious. The person lifted Shiro easily and started walking. Shiro thought they must have super strength because Shiro was no feather. They carried Shiro to a car and brought him to the hospital. 

Shiro rolled his chair away from his computer. He wasn’t going to get any more sleep tonight. Shiro thought about the footage. He knew Pidge wasn’t watching through the camera of his suit that day, otherwise she would have commented on it. He couldn’t tell if the masked people were Galra or not. The masked people must also know Shiro’s identity. If they were Galra, this could be a huge problem. They could also be villains outside the Galra. Either way, they had helped him. But why? Shiro’s head was pounding. He went to the kitchen and ate some cereal straight out of the box. He didn’t want to do anything today. If he didn’t think about the problem, he didn’t have to fix it. Shiro texted his mom to say he was free for dinner today. He needed to be somewhere comforting. Shiro texted Keith to ask him if he wanted to go. Immediately after sending the texts, Shiro realized it was 1 AM. Oops. He sat on the couch and mindlessly browsed the internet. When it was a more reasonable hour, Keith came out of his bedroom wrapped in a blanket, and joined Shiro on the couch. “I saw your text. You were up early,” Keith said. Shiro gave Keith a weak grin. Keith stared at him for a while.

“Are you okay?” Keith asked. 

Shiro rubbed his eyes. “Yeah, I’m alright. Just couldn’t sleep.” 

“Wanna go for a jog?”. 

“Yeah, okay.” 

Jogging with Keith was nice. The familiar rhythm of running helped ground Shiro. Keith ran beside him. Shiro knew Keith preferred to sprint short distances and then take breaks in between, so he appreciated the effort Keith was making to spend time with him. When they got back, they were both flushed and sweaty. Shiro let Keith take a shower first. Shiro leaned back on the couch. Maybe he would take a nap. A loud noise filled the apartment. Shiro started and looked around wildly. He realized a few seconds later it was just his phone. He really should get some more sleep. He looked at the caller ID. It was just a bunch of numbers. Shiro picked up. “Hello, who is this?”. 

“Oh, hi, this is, um, Lance.” 

Shiro had hoped he would call soon. There was no guarantee Lance would call him after Shiro gave him his number. “I need to talk to you about something. When are you free to meet up? I don’t want you to hang up on me,” Shiro said.

He heard Lance take a shallow breath. “Why can’t we just talk on the phone? I don’t want you trying to capture me. I promise I won't hang up”. 

Shiro rubbed his temple. His headache was coming back. “Fine. Who were those masked people that brought me to the hospital?”. 

Lance inhaled sharply. “How did you know about that?”. 

“There’s a camera on my suit. I shut it off when I let you go last night.”

“Oh.”

They both stayed silent. “They’re my friends. I asked them to take you to the hospital because I thought you were gonna die,” Lance said.

The masked people must be other villains. “Why did you care if I died?”. 

“What do you mean, why did I care? I don’t want to hurt innocent people!”. 

Lance didn't hurt him, Shiro hurt himself. It wouldn’t have been Lance’s responsibility if Shiro had died. He made a stupid decision which led to his injury. He appreciated the sentiment nonetheless. Shiro asked Lance if he had any new info on the Galra. He didn’t

Shiro remembered something he had been meaning to ask. 

“Do you have multiple superpowers, or are you a human-animal hybrid? Or a mix of both?” Shiro asked. He heard Lance laugh. Shiro was confused. 

“Why are you laughing?”. 

“It’s just-” Lance broke off, still laughing. “You haven’t guessed yet?”. Shiro frowned. He thought it was difficult to tell what Lance’s powers were. 

“I’ll keep you in suspense, then. Figure it out, big boy!”. Lance hung up on him. 

Shiro looked at his phone in disbelief. He would figure it out eventually. Shiro saved Lance’s number. He was unsure what to put for the contact name. He ended up inputting the name as Lance. It would look suspicious if Shiro had a contact called the Blue Lion. Shiro laughed aloud at the thought of Keith looking over his shoulder at Shiro’s phone and discovering he had the Blue Lion’s phone number. “What’s so funny?” said a voice from the hallway. 

Shiro looked up and saw Keith. Keith’s wet hair was dripping water all over his t-shirt. “I was just thinking about a cute cat video,” Shiro lied. He tried to appear at ease. Keith sat next to him and flicked on the TV. They spent most of the day doing nothing but watching TV, which was exactly what Shiro needed. Soon it was dinnertime. Shiro drove Keith to his family home. He could tell Keith was excited by the slight upward tilt of his mouth. Shiro parked on the street in front of the house. It was a one-story ranch house, perfect for their small family. Shiro noticed obaasan’s hydrangeas were looking nice. Shiro rang the doorbell. A minute later his mother opened the door. As soon as she saw him she hugged him fiercely. Shiro hugged her back, carefully. When he was a child, Shiro had accidentally given his mother bruises when he hugged her too hard. She had super strength too, but that didn’t mean she was invulnerable. When she released him she moved on to Keith. 

“Hi, Kamiko,” Keith said. Their hug was quicker. It took years before Keith let anyone in Shiro’s family touch him, but now he knew them well enough to trust them. Shiro’s mother moved aside so they could get in. Shiro’s grandmother was waiting for him. She didn’t move from her spot but held out her arms to him. He put his arms around her but didn’t squeeze at all. Shiro took a step back so Keith had his turn.

“Hello, Harumi. It’s good to see you,” Keith said. She nodded at him. “It’s good to see you as well. Snail has missed you.” Harumi had initially disliked Keith when Shiro brought him home. Keith didn’t have good table manners and wasn’t good at socializing. However, once Snail took a liking to him, Harumi decided he couldn’t be all bad. Harumi was of the opinion that animals knew when a person was good or not.

“I’ve got to go back to the kitchen to check on dinner,” Kamiko said. While Kamiko went to the kitchen, Shiro saw Keith head in the opposite direction, into the living room. Shiro followed Keith with his grandmother. Harumi sat in her armchair. Keith sat on their couch, pulling his legs up with him. Snail raced over to him and curled up in his lap. Keith gently stroked her back. Shiro walked over and kneeled on the ground in front of them. He held out his hand and let her rub against it. He gave her a few scritchies behind her ears before he stood back up. “I’m going to go help mom with dinner,” Shiro said. Keith nodded and continued petting the cat. Shiro went to the kitchen to check on Kamiko. She was standing next to the stove, stirring a pot. Shiro leaned over to take a peek. Potatoes and carrots simmered in an orange sauce. 

“I made your favorite,” Kamiko said,” now go tell Keith and your obaasan that dinner is ready.” Shiro set the table, then brought Keith and Harumi to the kitchen. Keith was reluctant to leave the comfiness of the couch, but he was persuaded by the promise of food. Everyone sat down at the kitchen table, except for Snail, who went underneath Keith’s chair. “Ooh, curry rice,” Keith said before he started shoveling rice in his mouth. At least he was using his fork. Shiro saw Keith putting some rice in his hand and putting it under his chair. Snail ate it up eagerly.  
“So, how have you been, Takashi,” Kamiko said. Shiro tried to think of a way to say he had been awful without worrying his family. 

“Just normal superhero stuff.” Keith stepped on his foot. Shiro kicked him off.

“A lot of people have been going missing, so be careful,” Keith said around a mouthful of rice.

“Missing? Do you know what’s happening to them?” Kamiko asked. Keith shook his head. Shiro answered for him since Keith’s mouth was full of rice and no one wanted to see that. “We don’t know why people are going missing, but we know the Galra are behind it.” 

Kamiko slapped the table. Shiro startled at the loud sound. Snail ran out of the room. Shiro stared at his mother. “Can’t they leave people alone? Haven’t they done enough already?”. 

Shiro looked down at the table, which now had a large crack in it. Shiro was going to be an astronaut before the Galra took him. He wanted to explore the universe. Then he lost his arm. He went to live back home with his family. He went through physical therapy. He saw a psychiatrist and a therapist. He would never be the person he used to be, but he was better than he was immediately after coming home. Technically, Shiro could become an astronaut right now. Or a doctor, for that matter. But he didn’t want to. He wanted to protect innocent civilians from the Galra, to protect them from what he went through. Kamiko supported his decision to become a superhero, but that didn’t mean she didn’t worry about him. Harumi did not support his decision. She knew what the Galra did to Shiro, and she didn’t want them near him. Shiro understood she was trying to look out for him, but Shiro couldn’t rest knowing other people were in danger of going through what he went through. 

Everyone at the table was silent. “How’s your head,” Harumi asked. Kamiko took a deep breath in and out. “It’s okay. Still healing.” 

“How did you get that injury?” Harumi asked. Shiro felt his stomach twist. 

“I fell out of a window,” Shiro said. Keith snorted. Shiro stepped on his foot. Harumi looked down her nose at Shiro. Harumi was a short woman, but she could look down on anyone. She didn’t say anything, but Shiro could feel her disapproval in the air itself. They finished their meal in silence. Harumi remarked she never liked the table and she would be happy to replace it. They said their goodbyes. Kamiko made shiro lean down so she could press a kiss to his forehead. “Stay safe, Takashi. I love you.” 

“I love you too, mom.” Shiro pressed a kiss to her cheek and gave her a hug. Keith gave Snail many kisses on top of her head. She rubbed her face on Keith’s and purred. Keith gave her a few goodbye pats, and then they left.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some Pidge this chapter, and then shance :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Give me any comments, questions, or suggestion you have :)  
> my Tumblr is @voltronfanblog

Shiro awoke to the sound of his phone ringing. He groaned and rolled over to look at it. It was Saturday. It was Pidge, so he picked up. “Hello?”, he said in his scratchy morning voice.

“Hey Shiro, are you free for lunch today?”. That wasn’t what Shiro had been expecting. He breathed a sigh of relief that he didn’t have another mission. 

“Sure. If we go to McDiddy’s then I’ll pay.”

“Oh, also Matt’s coming.” 

Shiro sighed. “I’ll pay for him too.” He knew they were mooching off him, but he also knew they both didn’t have much money. Shiro agreed to meet them at noon. It would be good to see Matt again. He checked the time and realized it was eleven. He overslept. Not that it mattered. His job wasn’t 9-5 so he didn’t have to worry about waking up early every day. Shiro made himself a coffee and had a quick snack. He showered and put on clean clothes. He put his suit and mask in the backseat, just in case. He arrived at McDiddy’s early, so he ordered Matt and Pidge’s favorite along with his own order. Matt and Pidge arrived just before their food was ready. They brought everything outside to their usual table. After Shiro set down his food, he pulled Matt into a hug. Matt stumbled into his chest. Shiro may have pushed too hard. “It’s been too long,” Shiro said. Matt nodded. They separated, then sat down. Pidge was eating with gusto. One reason Pidge and Keith were friends was their love of food. “So Pidge, what made you decide to invite us to lunch,” Shiro prompted. He knew Pidge cared about both of them, but she wasn’t prone to instigating social outings. Pidge set her burger down. “There’s something I’m going to tell my parents. But I want your support first.” Shiro nodded. 

“Pidgey are you a lesbian? Or trans? I support you no matter what-” Matt said.  
“No, that’s not it. Well, I don’t know, I’m too busy to think about that stuff right now. I just...I don’t want to be behind the scenes anymore. I want to go into the field. To fight.” Shiro and Matt stayed silent. Pidge was so young. She didn’t have any combat training. He wanted to make a pun about Pidge being behind the scenes because of her superpower, but he restrained himself. “I really need you guys to back me up. I’m an adult, I should be able to make my own decisions,” Pidge said. Shiro could agree with that, at least. Pidge’s parents tended to be overprotective of her. Matt was the only one who helped Pidge with her schemes. It still surprised Shiro that Pidge was actually an adult now. Shiro had known Pidge since she was a 10-year-old kid. He felt so old. Matt, too, had changed. He wasn’t that short nerdy kid anymore. Now he was a tall nerdy kid. Shiro admitted to himself that Matt was hot now. Shiro wasn’t going to tell him that, though; Matt’s ego was inflated enough as it was. “I agree, Pidge,” Matt said, which was no surprise to Shiro. “It’s your choice if you want to go into the field. I’ll worry about you, though.” 

“Thanks for supporting me.” Pidge looked down at her lap. Shiro realized he was supposed to be saying something. “I support you too, Pidge. With the proper training, you could be an excellent superhero.” Pidge grinned. She went back to enjoying her burger. Shiro knew Pidge didn’t want her personal time with the burger to be interrupted, so he turned to Matt. “How’ve you been?” Shiro asked. Matt shrugged. “Same old. Classes are too easy. I’m going to graduate early, in 3 months”. Shiro nodded. Matt couldn’t graduate soon enough. As soon as he graduated, he could move off garrison property and get an apartment. Pidge was planning on moving in with him. 

He was happy for Matt. Really, he was. But he couldn’t help the bit of jealousy he still harbored. Shiro should have graduated. He should be exploring space. But that wasn’t what he ended up choosing. Shiro ate some fries to take his mind off it. 

Pidge looked up from her burger. “Could you come over tomorrow, when I tell my parents?”. Shiro had expected that. “Of course, Pidge.” The Holt parents didn’t exactly listen to their kids. They thought they knew what was best for them. Shiro knew that Pidge, as she was now without training, could still be helpful on missions. Of course, he was going to insist on training her, but he knew she could already bring a lot to the table. Pidge and Keith would make an excellent stealth team. Shiro and Pidge could make a great team as well. The villains would only be focusing on Shiro, and then Pidge could attack. They would still need Pidge for some of the technical aspects of their team, but Hunk could accomplish the parts she wouldn’t have time for anymore. Shiro had suspected that Pidge would go the superhero route. She was feisty, and though she didn’t show it very often, she was a very caring person. Shiro knew she would want to protect the public in a more direct way. 

When everyone had finished their meals they said their goodbyes and parted ways. Shiro left in good spirits. He was going to teach Pidge to fend for herself. He stopped by the grocery store for some veggies and fruit, as well as some chicken drumsticks. Shiro went back to the apartment. He cooked the chicken with some lemon juice and rosemary and cooked some carrots for the side dish. He put some of the chicken in the fridge, for later. Keith and Shiro had strange eating habits. They went from eating only junk food for weeks to eating normal balanced meals like it was nothing. Shiro prepared a salad. The sound of the lock clicking alerted Shiro to Keith’s presence. Shiro welcomed him home. Keith was sweaty and had grease stains all over him. Rather than turning him off, Shiro somehow found him more attractive. “I made dinner,” Shiro said. Keith perked up and walked to the kitchen. Keith sat and started eating his salad. He wasn’t using his fork, but Shiro figured it was fine since he hadn’t used salad dressing. Shiro sat beside him and started on his. They ate in silence. Shiro put the carrots and chicken on a plate and set it in front of Keith. Keith started eating immediately, so Shiro made himself a plate. Shiro thought he’d made some nice chicken. Keith thought so too, judging by his empty plate. Shiro told Keith he could have some more, so Keith ate the rest of the chicken in the pan. Shiro was glad he had put some of the chicken in the fridge earlier. He would have something good to eat tomorrow. While Keith was munching on the chicken, Shiro thought to fill him in on what happened today. “Pidge is going to join us in the field,” Shiro said. Keith nodded. He didn’t look surprised. Keith and Pidge were good friends, so she must have told him her intentions already. “She’s going to tell her parents this weekend, so Matt and I are going to be there.” Keith put the chicken bone in the trash. “I could go too.” Shiro hesitated. He wasn’t sure if that was a good idea. Keith was temperamental. Telling Pidge’s parents that she wanted to do something dangerous regularly would be a delicate situation. “I think having more people there would make the situation worse.” Keith walked out of the room. Shiro was unsure if that meant he was offended or just thought the conversation had ended. Shiro followed Keith. “I’m sure Pidge would appreciate it if you were there for her afterward,” Shiro said. Keith nodded and continued walking to his room. Maybe he was just tired. Shiro hoped he wasn’t going straight to sleep with all that grease on him. Pidge texted him. She said she didn’t want to mention it at lunch with Matt present, but Keith had told her the Blue Lion told them he was the anonymous caller. She concluded that the Blue Lion was either fighting against the Galra or working for the Galra and trying to trick the superheroes. 

The next day, Shiro reluctantly left the apartment to go to the Holt’s house. He usually enjoyed visits there, but today was going to be a faceoff between Pidge and her parents. Shiro was glad Matt was on Pidge’s side. At least Shiro and Matt respected Pidge’s autonomy. Shiro pulled up in front of their house. It was an average white suburban with a grey roof, but it felt like home. Shiro knocked on the door. Barking greeted him. The door opened slightly, but then the person had to grab the dog. “Silly dog, barking at Shiro,” Matt scolded her. She did not stop barking. Shiro opened the door on his own. He leaned down to offer BaeBae his hand. She sniffed him, then gave him a lick and started wagging her tail. Shiro pet her. He lied down on the carpet and let BaeBae walk on top of him. Matt watched them with a smile. BaeBae licked Shiro’s face. Shiro laughed at her. He gently moved her off of him and stood back up. He noticed Pidge was now standing at the bottom of the stairs. She waved. Shiro waved back. Shiro thought Pidge must be nervous. “It’ll be fine,” Shiro said. Pidge looked at the floor. Shiro walked upstairs, into the family room. Pidge, Matt, and BaeBae followed him. He found Colleen sitting on the bright purple couch reading a book. “Hey,” Shiro said. Colleen looked up and dropped her book. “Shiro! I didn’t know you were coming over!”. Shiro shot Pidge a look. She avoided his gaze. “Sorry, Colleen.” “Oh, it’s alright, Shiro, you know you can come over anytime. You just surprised me.” She told Shiro Sam was in his study. Shiro gave Pidge a look. “I need to tell you guys something. Could you get dad?”. Colleen pursed her lips. Shiro sat down on the purple couch beside Matt. BaeBae jumped up beside them. Pidge sat on the floor at their feet. Colleen coaxed Sam out of his study. Sam sat on a lime green armchair. Coleen sat in the matching armchair. “What did you do, Katie?” Colleen asked. Pidge flinched. 

“She didn’t do anything, she just wants to talk about something,” Matt said. Colleen's eyes flitted over to Shiro and Matt, then back to Pidge. 

“Is something going on, honey? Are you okay?” Sam asked. Pidge nodded. “I’m fine. I just wanted to tell you something.” Shiro put a hand on her shoulder. He hoped it was comforting.

“I want to go into the field, to be a superhero. I have a superpower I can use to protect the public, and that’s what I want to do”. 

“Katie, that's dangerous!” Colleen snapped. She leaned forward in her chair. 

Sam nodded. “I would have to agree,” he said. 

“I can’t believe you’re encouraging this, Matt!” Colleen said. Shiro wasn’t sure if he was grateful that he was being ignored or irritated. Colleen leaned over to whisper in Sam’s ear. Sam nodded. 

“You’re not living under our roof if you decide to be a superhero now. You’re too young,” Colleen said. Shiro felt that swooping feeling like when missed a step on the stairs. They were threatening to throw her out. Shiro had no idea they would react this badly. He thought they would try to get her to change her mind, not threaten to throw her out. They knew Pidge currently didn’t make enough to get an apartment. Shiro could let Pidge stay here until Matt graduated, where she could then choose what she wanted to do. Or, he could take her out of this situation right now. Shiro had previously had a good relationship with everyone in the Holt family, but right now he wanted to throw Colleen and Sam across the room. He purposefully didn’t look at them. Shiro had to have some self-control. A shove from an average person wouldn't hurt them, but a shove from Shiro could break their ribs. 

Shiro looked down at where he was holding Pidge’s shoulder and saw nothing except the carpet. He felt her moving out of his grasp and heard her footsteps as she ran out of the room. Shiro rubbed his temples. He stood up and followed Pidge out of the room. Matt followed him. Shiro didn’t know where she went, but he had Matt on his side. Matt led Shiro to Pidge’s room. The pale green walls were covered in posters and every surface had gadgets, except for one shelf which was full of stuffed animals. Shiro could see an indentation in the bed where it was being sat on and could hear quiet sniffles. Shiro and Matt sat next to the indentation in the bed. Shiro held his arms out blindly until he felt something. He lifted Pidge up and sat her on his lap. 

“It’s going to be okay, Pidge, just three months until I graduate,” Matt said from beside him. Shiro felt around the air until he felt soft hair. He let his hand rest on Pidge’s head. He was very glad he hadn’t accidentally poked her eye out. He used his other hand to rub her back. Shiro could hear her sniffles and felt tears soaking his shirt. Shiro looked at Matt, then back at his lap. She didn’t have to wait to become a superhero. Shiro could take her away from here, but her parents might not forgive him. Shiro knew they were just concerned for her safety, but he disagreed with their parenting style. They should be encouraging her dreams. Even if they disagreed with her, it wasn’t their place to stop her. She was an adult now. Shiro still saw a kid when he looked at Pidge. But instead of trying to protect her from everything, Shiro knew she needed room to grow. Being a superhero was dangerous, there was no doubt about that. But Pidge could make her own decisions now. Continuing to live under her parent’s roof shouldn’t change that. She told them what she wanted to do with her life, her dream, and they threatened to kick her out. 

Shiro thought his affection for the Holt parents might have been clouding his vision before. They weren't very good parents. “Pidge, if you want to, you can live with me until Matt graduates.” He was careful to frame it as Pidge’s choice. Because unlike her parents, Shiro respected that she could make her own decisions. Shiro couldn’t see Pidge’s expression, but he heard the sniffles stop. He glanced at Matt, who gave him a small smile. “Thanks for the offer, but I’m gonna ask Hunk if I can live with him.” Pidge’s voice was weak. She sounded younger than she was. Shiro and Matt stayed with Pidge for another ten minutes while she calmed down. She became visible again. Shiro saw her eyes were bloodshot and her face was splotchy with red. Pidge wiped her eyes and then sat up straight. Shiro removed his hand from her head but kept the hand on her back. Pidge pulled out her phone and called Hunk. 

“Hey Pidge, what’s up?”, Hunk said. 

“Hey, Hunk. I told my parents I want to be a superhero, and they said they would kick me out if I did that. Can I stay with you for three months?”. 

Hunk inhaled sharply. “How dare they? How dare they do that to you? Of course you can stay with me.” Pidge and Hunk worked out the details. 

“Okay. Let’s do it,” Pidge said. She picked up her backpack from her desk and started loading it with a bunch of gadgets and her favorite stuffed animals. Matt got a suitcase out of her closet and put in clothes, then went to the bathroom to get toiletries. Pidge put her most cherished posters in a flat section of her suitcase. They were sure to get everything Pidge wanted. She wasn’t coming back. It started feeling real to Shiro. Pidge, the kid he thought of as his little sister, was moving out of her parent’s house. He saw Pidge struggling to lift her backpack so he picked it up. Pidge took the hand of her suitcase and rolled it behind her. They walked over to the family room, where Colleen was reading her book again. She looked up and saw the bags and their somber expressions. “What do you think you’re doing, Katie?” Colleen said. 

Shiro was going to answer for Pidge but she spoke. “ You said you don’t want me under your roof if I’m going to be a superhero, so I’m leaving.” Pidge didn’t wait for her to respond. Pidge paused at the top of the stairs, looking at her suitcase. Shiro handed the backpack to Matt and lifted the suitcase with one arm. Shiro could hear Colleen talking rapidly to Sam behind them. 

The parents caught up to them just before they left the door. “Katie, where are you going?” Sam said. 

Pidge looked over her shoulder. “I’m going away from you.” 

Sam turned on Shiro. “I can’t believe this. Are you really enabling her?”. 

Shiro stared at him, keeping his face blank. “She’s an adult.” Matt and Shiro walked out the door to Shiro’s car. They loaded it up with Pidge’s stuff. Shiro turned to Matt. “What about you?”, Shiro asked. 

“I only planned to stay for the weekend. I’ll just leave early.” Matt let Pidge ride shotgun. They usually fought over that position. On the way home, Shiro’s phone rang. Pidge slipped it out of his pocket. “Who’s Lance?”. His phone rang again. All the air left Shiro’s lungs. “He’s...uh...a guy…” Shiro trailed off. The phone rang a third time. Matt leaned towards him from the backseat. 

“Did lil’ Shiro get a boyfriend?”, Matt asked in a falsetto voice. Fourth ring. Shiro hated when Matt addressed him in the third person. Shiro felt his face grow warm. “No.” Matt leaned closer. Pidge looked at Matt, an evil grin on her face. She pressed the answer button.

“Hello?”, Lance said. 

“Hi, this is Pidge, Shiro’s friend. Are you his boyfriend?”. The line went silent. “Um...what did he tell you?”. 

“He said you're his boyfriend,” Pidge said. “I did not say that!” Shiro said loudly. 

“So are you his boyfriend or not?” Pidge asked. 

“Uh...I dunno?”, Lance said. 

“I knew it!” Matt yelled in victory. 

“Shiro has a boyfriend, Shiro has a boyfriend”, the siblings chanted. 

“Lance, please hang up,” Shiro said weakly. 

Lance laughed. “No way, this is too funny. Who are these people?”. Shiro didn’t want to give Lance their names. He might figure out Pidge was part of his team. Pidge answered. “I’m Pidge. And my brother is Matt. We’re Shiro’s friends.” Lance laughed again. “Send him my love,” Lance said before cackling and hanging up. Shiro blushed furiously. He purposefully kept his grip on the steering wheel loose. He didn’t want another steering wheel incident. 

“So how did you two meet?” Matt asked in a sultry tone. Keep your hands loose, Shiro told himself. “We met in the park,” Shiro said. They did technically see each other in the park once. 

“Is he a jogger? Are you both weird muscle dudes?” Pidge asked. Shiro sighed. He hoped they would drop it soon. “He’s a jogger, but he has a smaller build than me.”

“So he’s a twink,” Matt said. Shiro’s grip on the steering wheel tightened. “There is a Pidge present,” Shiro reminded him. 

“I’m not a minor anymore!,” Pidge said, ”So is he a twink?”. Shiro heard the steering wheel creak. He loosened his grip. “Can we change the subject, please?”. 

“So he is a twink,” Pidge decided. 

“He’s not my boyfriend,” Shiro said,” just a friendly jog buddy.” Shiro was glad Pidge was feeling better, even if it was at his own expense. Shiro pulled up to Hunk’s apartment complex. He lifted Pidge’s suitcase again while Matt got her backpack. They entered the building. Pidge took a handful of complimentary candy from the lobby. They went up the elevator to the apartment. Shiro knocked; Hunk opened the door immediately. Hunk fretted over Pidge, saying a million words a minute, most of which were variations of “are you okay” and “I hate your parents”. Hunk didn’t have a guest bedroom, but he offered Pidge the pullout couch and cleaned out his dresser for her to use. Pidge covered her new bed with stuffed animals and gadgets. Shiro decided he would make sure everyone was checking in on Pidge incrementally. This must be hard for her. Shiro texted Keith about what was going on. He gave Matt a ride back to the Holt’s house. He didn’t envy the conversation Matt was going to have with his parents. 

Shiro decided to go for a jog again. It would be good to make sense of his thoughts. Shiro ran on his usual path around the lake. The day was cloudy, but no rain was forecast. An elderly couple sat and watched the ducks. Shiro kept a steady pace. He took a break at a water fountain. He stooped down to drink. He was overcome with a sudden feeling of anxiety. He stood up slowly and then abruptly turned to look behind him. Far behind him on the path stood a man in a suit. Shiro felt himself break out in a cold sweat. The man, noticing Shiro's eyes on him, turned in the opposite direction and started speed walking away. Shiro ran after the man, catching up easily. He grabbed the back of the man’s suit and spun him around, holding him a few feet above the ground. The man had dark hair and was clean-shaven. His face was handsome, but cruel. Shiro didn’t recognize him, but he knew without a doubt this man was Galra. 

“Why are you following me,” Shiro demanded. The man’s expression didn’t change. He said nothing. Shiro set the man down and grabbed both his wrists and held them together. Shiro didn’t have handcuffs with him, but he didn’t need them. He brought the man back to his apartment, handcuffed him, and then brought him to the police station. Technically, the police couldn’t charge him with anything yet, but once the man refused to cooperate or divulged information about the Galra they could charge him with something. Shiro texted Pidge details of the situation. He thought for a moment, then texted Lance with the same information. Pidge said she would send him updates on the situation. Lance responded with an “I told you so” and a winky face. Shiro remembered Lance had called earlier. Shiro texted Lance saying he wanted to meet in person again. Shiro wanted to find out if Lance was holding back any information. Lance was hesitant to meet with Shiro in person, but Shiro convinced him to meet at a nearby cafe without their disguises. Lance said he was free today. Shiro wondered if Lance had a job. Shiro took a quick shower and changed into clean clothes. He eyes himself in the mirror. The front of his hair was fluffing up. Shiro pressed it down. As soon as he removed his hand his hair fluffed up again. Shiro sighed and decided that was as good as it was going to get. He put some handcuffs in his pocket just in case. The cafe was close, so Shiro decided to walk. 

The cafe was a small building. It had window boxes filled with purple flowers and its door was painted to match. A poster on the window advertised their special drink of the month. Shiro checked his phone. He was early. Shiro entered the cafe and looked around. He saw two high school age girls at the counter looking at the baked goods and a scruffy man in his 20s sitting at a table, looking at his computer. Shiro ordered a small version of the monthly special drink, some kind of vanilla caramel thing, and then sat down in the corner booth. He didn't really want a drink but it was rude not to order anything. Shiro got his drink when they called his name and then sat down at his table again. He took a hesitant sip. It was good, but too sweet after a few sips. Shiro checked Facebook. His mom posted a status update that Shiro had visited her for dinner and she was so blessed to have such a caring son. Shiro smiled at his phone. He commented a heart emoji. He scrolled through pictures and videos of cute cats and dogs. He checked the door every few minutes. Finally, he saw a young man enter the cafe. Shiro’s attention was captured by the tight blue tank top he was wearing. The man walked closer and slid into Shiro’s booth. Shiro checked that he had bright blue eyes to be certain. “You’re younger than I thought,” Shiro noted. Lance rolled his eyes. “I’m only a few years younger than you.” Shiro examined Lance’s face; Shiro could finally see him without the mask. He had smooth tan skin and curly, chocolatey brown hair. Freckles dusted his cheeks. His lips were plump and pink. He was cute. Shiro screamed internally. “What kind of drink did you get,” Lance said. Shiro shrugged. “The special. I don’t really like it.” Lance eyed his drink. Shiro pushed it over to him. Lance looked delighted. He finished the drink in record time

“So, what did you want to meet about,” Lance prompted. 

Shiro paused for a moment to collect his thoughts. “I was curious if you know more than I do about what the Galra are doing. We know the Galra are taking superhumans and humans and doing experiments, but that’s it.”

Lance put his elbow on the table and propped his face up with one hand. “And you know about the pure bloodlines too, right?”. 

Pure bloodlines? Shiro had a pure bloodline. His parents and grandparents were all superhuman and all had super strength. He didn’t like to advertise his status. He didn’t want to have people think he was bragging. “What about pure bloodlines?”. 

Lance lifted his head up. “You didn’t know? All the superhumans and human-animal hybrids being kidnapped have pure bloodlines.” 

Shiro stayed stock still for a full minute. Of course! How had they missed that? Shiro considered how he was going to tell Pidge that all the victims had pure bloodlines without telling her where the information had come from. He texted Pidge that she needed to look into the genealogy of the victims without offering an explanation. “Why are they experimenting on people?”, Shiro asked. 

“I don’t know.” 

“What do you have against the Galra?”.

Lance looked away from Shiro and down at the floor. He didn’t respond for a minute. “They did something to me, and now I want them to pay.” 

Shiro wondered what the Galra did to Lance, but he didn’t want to pry and scare Lance away. “Are you a superhuman with multiple powers or a human-animal hybrid?”. Technically superhuman was an umbrella term for people with powers and for human-animal hybrids, but it could also be used just to describe people with powers. 

Lance smirked. “I’ll give you a hint. Why did you choose Atlas as your superhero name?”. 

Shiro knew that was common knowledge. Atlas was the name of the titan in Greek mythology who was strong enough to hold up the world. That was why he picked the name. Lance’s villain name must be connected to his power, then. Blue Lion. Oh. He understood now. “You’re part cat?”. Lance beamed and nodded. So he was a human-animal hybrid. Shiro didn’t know much about them. “How did you climb down the wall that one time?”.

Lance held out his hands for Shiro to inspect. His nails were sharp and painted blue. Lance curled his fingers and his nails moved and got longer and longer. Past the blue paint, his nails were dark grey. Claws. He had claws. Shiro had not expected that. Lance looked at Shiro’s face and started laughing. He must have a stupid expression on his face. In his defense, there was no way he could ever be prepared for that. He was aware human-animal hybrids could have physical animal traits, but he had only seen it in movies. He wondered if Lance’s feet had claws, too. Shiro had seen videos of cats climbing straight up walls. “And..how about the running super fast?”. 

“Domestic cats can run 30 miles per hour.” Oh. Shiro really thought Lance was just a superhuman with multiple powers. It was probably Shiro's lack of education about human-animal hybrids that led him to that conclusion. He could have guessed from Lance’s villain name. Shiro looked at Lance. He imaged little cat ears poking out of his hair. That would be cute. He wondered if Lance had a tail. Probably not. He needed to keep on task. 

“How did you know the drug deals were going to happen before they happened?”, Shiro asked. 

Lance avoided eye contact. “I...overheard some Galra talking about drug deals.” 

Shiro didn’t believe that for a second. Lance would have had to follow the Galra around constantly until they just happened to reveal the time and location of the drug deal. Twice. Shiro scooted along the booth’s bench until he was pressed next to Lance. He casually put one arm around Lance’s shoulders. It was a subtle threat. To anyone else it would look friendly. He deepened his voice. “You want to try that again, Lance?”.

Lance turned his head so he was looking at the opposite side of the cafe. His eyes darted toward the door. “I...can't talk about it,” Lance finally said. 

Shiro gently pressed Lance closer to his side. He didn’t want to give him bruises. “Why not?”. Shiro used his other hand to turn Lance's face towards him.

“I can’t talk about it,” Lance repeated. Shiro couldn’t force him to talk. Shiro wished he knew what Lance wasn’t telling him. If he knew how Lance was getting his info, it could be helpful in tracking down the Galra. “Fine. Who are your masked friends who brought me to the hospital?”. 

Lance shifted uncomfortably. “None of your business.” Shiro noticed out of the corner of his eye that the other cafe patrons were eyeing them. Shiro gave Lance a quick warning before he pressed a kiss to Lance's forehead. Shiro felt his cheeks burning. The other patrons turned away. Shiro sighed in relief and released Lance’s face. He noticed Lance’s cheeks were pinker than before. Shiro cleared his throat. “You don’t like the Galra. Fine. But why are you getting help from superheroes?”.

“Well...I can’t exactly show up to a police station and hand in a criminal without them catching me.” 

That made sense. “The Galra that was following me. Do you know if he knows I’m a superhero?”. 

Lance shook his head. “I don’t know anything about him.” Shiro released his hold on Lance and scooted away from him slightly. Shiro offered to buy Lance something for his cooperation. Lance hovered in front of the baked goods display, trying to decide between a blueberry muffin or a large peanut butter cookie. Shiro bought him both before he could decide. The worker handed Lance the baked goods. Lance looked down at the food in his hands and smiled. Shiro felt himself smiling in response. Shiro had money to spare, and he didn’t mind using it if it made other people happy. Shiro stayed at the cafe with Lance while he ate his food. Lance offered him some of his cookie and muffin but Shiro refused. Shiro had enough sugar for the day. Lance thanked him for the drink and food and left. Shiro watched him leave. He stayed in the cafe for a while to contemplate what he had learned.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro and Allura have lunch. Lance and Shiro get some time alone. Pidge gets some training.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter isn't edited as much as my other chapters, so let me know if you don't like it as much and I will change it up :)

Shiro sat down on his couch and turned on the TV. Finally, after non-stop action, he could take a break. He settled into the couch and waited for his show to load. His phone dinged so he took a look. Pidge messaged him that the man that was following him had escaped police custody. They identified him as Ronal Yictil. Shiro sighed. Ronald had outside help in escaping. Pidge told him she theorized that the other Galra didn’t want him to share information so they removed him from the situation. Shiro asked her why they didn’t go after the drug dealer he caught. Pidge said the drug dealer didn’t know anything about the Galra except who gave him the drugs to sell. 

Shiro set his phone down and started watching his show. Keith was at work, so Shiro had the whole day to himself. He got a few episodes into the show before his phone dinged again. He sighed and picked it up. Now what? Shiro was surprised to see that it was Allura texting him. She went on a trip to England to visit her parents. Shiro forgot she was coming home this week. She said she would love to meet with him to catch up and she knew exactly the place to go. Shiro looked forward to visiting the tea shop again. They set time and date. Shiro lounged around for the rest of the day. He deserved it. 

A few days later, Shiro drove his car to the tea place. It had wide windows with delicate blue trim. A wind chime made of shells rustled in the wind. A hedge lined the sides of the building. A painted sign read ‘Altea Tea’. It was named after the city in England from which Allura originated. Allura transferred to the U.S. 5 years ago. Shiro and Allura worked jobs together occasionally and eventually became friends. The news speculated that they might be secretly dating. They would be an excellent power couple if Shiro liked women. He wasn’t hiding his sexuality from the public, it just hadn’t come up. News reporters would ask him if he was dating anyone and if so who was the “lucky lady”. Shiro just told them he wasn’t currently dating anyone. 

Shiro entered the tea shop. A bell announced his arrival. Shiro walked up to a podium with a young woman behind it. Shiro asked her if Allura was there. She told him his party had already arrived and pointed him in the right direction. Shiro spotted Allura sitting next to a wide window. He waved and sat across from her. She was looking glamorous, as usual. Her hair was up in an elegant style with two strands framing her face and her flowy white dress accentuated her figure. Shiro greeted her and asked her how she had been. 

“I have been doing well, thank you, Shiro. It was nice to see my parents again. How are you?” Allura said. 

Shiro sighed. “A lot has been going on lately. More people are going missing and deals are happening more frequently. I’ve been on so many missions lately. I feel overwhelmed.” 

Allura frowned. “I’m sorry to hear that, Shiro. I am glad my trip was short now. I will be of any help I can.” Shiro and Allura brought each other up to speed on everything they had been doing. Allura mentioned that Coran was busy today, so Shiro wouldn’t be able to see him. Shiro told her Pidge wanted to be a superhero. Allura was delighted and offered at once to help train her. Allura said she was looking forward to doing missions again. A few minutes later a server walked up to their table. Shiro saw their black apron out of the corner of his eye. “Hello, may I take your order?”. 

Shiro whipped around so fast he almost fell out of his chair. He knew that voice. “Lance?” Shiro said. Lance stared at him. “You..work here?”. Allura gave them a curious look. 

“Yeah… I just started here a few months ago,” Lance said. That explained why Shiro hadn’t seen him here before. Out of all the places in the city, Lance had to work here. Shiro glanced at Allura, who was observing them. 

“It’s good to see you, buddy,” Shiro said. Lance nodded at him. Allura and Shiro gave him their order and then he left. 

“May I ask how you two know each other?”. Shiro turned to Allura. He tried to keep a neutral face. “He’s a jogging buddy.” 

Allura gave a sly smirk. That couldn’t mean anything good. “Shiro, you are not skilled at introducing yourself to people. How did your friendship come to be?”. 

Shiro wracked his brain for a suitable explanation. “We both happened to be jogging at the same time. He asked me if I wanted to jog with him in the future, and I said yes.” Shiro tried to sound confident. 

Allura took a sip of water. “Shiro, I saw how fast you moved in your chair when you recognized him. Are you perhaps interested in this man?”. 

Shiro gaped at her. He tried to find an excuse. “I was just surprised he was here,” Shiro tried. 

Allura gave him her ‘bitch, please’ face. “He is rather cute. I can see why you like him.” Shiro knew he wasn’t going to convince her otherwise. Lance brought them their Darjeeling tea. Shiro made small talk with Lance while Allura watched them with a knowing smile. Lance left their table and Shiro and Allura were left alone again.

“Do you know his sexuality?”Allura asked. Shiro shook his head. At least that was an honest answer. Shiro changed the subject to superhero business. Lance came back with their tiny tea sandwiches and biscuits. Shiro and Allura thanked him and dug in. Shiro enjoyed the tiny sandwiches. He had to be careful not to crush them, but they were worth it. Watercress was his favorite, but the tuna ones weren’t bad. Shiro updated Allura on Pidge’s living situation. When he told Allura about how Keith went dumpster diving she started laughing. Allura’s laughs were usually delicate, but she started snorting after a few minutes. Shiro didn’t think it was that funny, but he was glad she was having fun. Lance brought them the check and containers for their leftovers. Allura turned to Lance. “Would you please bring me the assistant manager?”. Lance opened his mouth to say something but then closed it. “Of course, ma’am.” Shiro looked at Allura and raised one eyebrow. She gave him a devious smirk. Lance returned with the assistant manager, a skinny man in a suit. Allura stood up and shook his hand. Shiro did as well. The old assistant manager retired due to old age but this one had been here for a few years. 

“It’s good to see you, George,” Shiro said. Allura exchanged pleasantries with the man. Lance stood to the side, sweating profusely. “You see, George, my friend Shiro here simply must spend some time with Lance. It would be excellent if you would give him the rest of the day off. With full pay, of course.” Allura twirled her hair and smiled sweetly. George blushed. “Of course, miss,” George said. Everyone knew Allura was the apple of Coran’s eye and no one in the restaurant could go against her. George turned to Lance and repeated that he could have the day off. Lance gave the manager a half-smile then disappeared behind an employees-only door. He returned no longer wearing his apron and holding a satchel. “You two have a lovely time,” Allura said before she left. Shiro wanted to groan aloud. Allura was a good wing-woman. Too good. The timing was handy, though. Shiro took hold of Lance’s arm and led him out of the restaurant. “How may I help you,” Lance joked. 

“I’m going to have to ask you a few questions.” It was suspicious that Lance worked in a place connected to a superhero.

Shiro checked the time. Keith was still at work. Shiro drove Lance to his apartment complex. Lance hesitated by the front door of the lobby but Shiro subtly lifted him up with one arm and carried him across the threshold. Shiro led Lance to the elevators and into his apartment. He locked the door behind them. They stood awkwardly in the entryway. Shiro gestured to the couch. Lance perched on the edge of the cushion. Shiro sat on the opposite side. “So. Lance. Why did you choose to work at Altea Tea?”.

Lance crossed his arms. “It pays well and I needed a job. I don’t understand why you dragged me here.” If Lance was telling the truth, Shiro may have created a problem. If Lance didn’t know Allura was a superhero, and was working there with no ill intentions, then Shiro would have tipped him off something was going on. 

“Well, you see, my friend is a relative of the owner, so I was worried you might be trying to target her because she is connected to me.” 

Lance looked down at his lap. “I wouldn’t hurt an innocent person. Did you really think I was like that?”. Shiro slowly reached out his hand and placed it on Lance’s knee. “I apologize, Lance. I just had to be sure.” Shiro felt warmth on his hand and looked down to see Lance’s hand on top of his own. “It’s okay. I get it,” Lance said. Shiro's hand was getting sweaty. He wished he had used his right arm instead. Shiro, remembering Lance’s love of sugar, offered him ice cream. Shiro dug the vanilla ice cream container out of the back of the freezer. He prepared a large bowl of it for Lance. Shiro was lucky Keith forgot the freezer existed and only got food out of the cabinets and fridge. Shiro set the bowl on the coffee table. “Aren’t you having any?” Lance asked. Shiro shook his head. “I already had biscuits today. That’s enough sugar for me.” Lance shrugged and gobbled down his ice cream. Shiro wasn’t sure what to do next. 

“Do you have any news on the Galra?”. 

Lance looked up from his ice cream and rolled his eyes. 

“I would tell you if I did. Chill,” Lance said,” Haha, get it? Chill? ‘Cuz ice cream?”. Lance grinned at him. Shiro couldn’t help the wide smile that overtook his face. He loved puns. 

Shiro really wanted to know what the Galra were doing. Lance had a way to get information, although Shiro didn’t know how. Perhaps he climbed up somewhere out of sight and watched the Galra. Whatever Lance’s information gathering system was, it was working. He could have more information. 

“Did you find out about the pure bloodlines the same way you found out about the drug deals?”. Lance continued eating his ice cream. Shiro was about to speak again when Lance answered him. “I told you I can’t talk about that.” Lance finished off his ice cream and set down the empty bowl. 

“Can I leave now?... Or did you have something else planned?”. Lance fluttered his eyelashes. 

“Why can’t you talk about it?”. Lance turned away from him and crossed his arms. Shiro could see that he was pouting. “It’s important to get more information. If I can help you with that, I will,” Shiro encouraged. Lance looked back over at him. “You can’t help. And I can’t talk about it.” They sat in silence for a few minutes. “Last time we met, when I mentioned that people were being experimented on, you didn’t seem surprised,” Shiro said. Lance shook his head with a dejected look on his face. “I know they’re doing experiments on the people they kidnap.” Shiro tried to discern what Lance was thinking. He must have gotten that information from the same mysterious source. Lance looked so sad. Shiro wished he had more ice cream for him. He wished his mom were here to make Lance some cake.

Shiro pictured taking Lance to his family home. Lance had acted sociable around Shiro, so Shiro’s family was sure to warm up to him quickly. Shiro could just picture Lance napping on their couch with Snail resting on top of him. Shiro wondered if Lance, who was part cat, liked cats. “How do you feel about cats,” Shiro said before he could stop himself. Shiro propped his arm casually on the back of the sofa. Lance looked around the room. “Do you have a cat? I wanna meet them.”

Shiro said he didn’t have a cat at the apartment, but let slip he had a cat at his family home. Lance pestered him with questions about the cat. “What’s their gender? What’s their name? What color are they? Are they fluffy? How big-”. Shiro cut him off. “She’s a girl. Her name is Snail.” Lance paused, staring at Shiro in disbelief. “Who named her.” Shiro looked down at his lap in shame. “She’s grey,” Shiro said. Lance shifted closer to him. “Who named her, Shiro.” Shiro looked at the wall. Wow, what an interesting pattern. He could look at it all day. 

“I wanna meet her. And feed her fish. Man, I want fish,” Lance said. Shiro looked at Lance. He was pouting again. Good, he was distracted from Snail’s name. Shiro reached out and took Lance's hand. He turned it over so his palm was facing up. Lance looked at him curiously. Shiro opened his box of leftovers from the tea shop and placed a tiny tuna sandwich in Lance’s hand. Lance smiled at him and ate the sandwich in one bite. Shiro took another one from the box and held it out for Lance to take. Before Shiro could move, Lance darted towards him and grabbed the sandwich with his mouth. Shiro yanked his hand back. Lance swallowed. “Um, sorry. I go crazy for fish.” Shiro laughed nervously. “I can see that.” Shiro carefully moved the box towards Lance. Lance ate the rest of his tuna sandwiches. He licked his fingers. “Thanks for the fish. You’re always feeding me.” Shiro hadn’t realized that until Lance said it. He was always feeding Lance. He did that with Keith, too. He guessed it was a way of showing he cared. No, not like that, he didn’t care about Lance. He was caring about a fellow human being by feeding him. There was no further caring. He couldn't let a fellow human go hungry. Lance looked at Shiro when the sandwiches were gone. He opened his mouth a few times and closed it. 

“What is it?” Shiro asked. “What the Galra are doing to people they kidnap is horrible.” Shiro could attest to that. Shiro kept his body language relaxed. Shiro rested a hand on Lance’s shoulder. Perhaps he could get further information. “What do you mean?”. 

Lance fiddled with his hands. “They...they lock people in white rooms. And when they do experiments they strap them to tables and inject them with needles and even more horrible stuff.” Shiro inhaled sharply. Lance tensed. Shiro needed to play this cool. If he said the wrong thing, Lance might bolt. Shiro patted Lance’s shoulder in what he hoped was a soothing gesture. “They’re...what they're doing is so…” Lance's voice broke. Lance looked down at his lap. Tears started falling down his face. Shiro went into panic mode. He wasn’t qualified for this. He shifted closer to Lance and carefully put his arms around him. Lance stayed tense for a second, then melted into Shiro's arms. Shiro rubbed Lance’s back as he sobbed. Shiro had no idea what was happening. He was prepared to get vital information about the Galra and then Lance started crying. Shiro put his free hand on top of Lance’s head and stroked his hair. It was soft and fluffy. Shiro knew he shouldn’t be doing this, it was highly inappropriate, but he couldn’t bring himself to stop. Lance nuzzled into Shiro's hand. He sniffed. “Sorry, Shiro. I didn’t mean to freak out on you.” Shiro continued stroking his hair. Lance appeared like he had stopped crying. 

“What’s going on, Lance?” Shiro asked softly. 

“I...um..well I just started thinking about it and got overwhelmed.” Shiro let Lance have some time to recover. Lance took a few deep breaths. “The Galra...I know that you know that they experiment on people, but I just wanted to let you know how bad it is.” Shiro knew how bad it was. Lance was unaware that the Galra had taken Shiro. Lance started sniffling again. Shiro brought Lance closer to his chest. This was indeed awful, but Lance’s reaction seemed extreme. Shiro waited until he quieted down again. Shiro carefully tilted Lance’s face up so he was looking at shiro. “Lance, why are you crying?”. 

Lance’s eyes shifted away from him. Shiro continued stroking his hair. Shiro was almost certain he knew the answer. “I just don’t want it to happen to anyone else.” Either Lance was extremely empathetic, or he himself had been taken by the Galra. Shiro felt his body tense and forced himself to relax. He didn’t want to give Lance bruises. He released Lance's face and let him snuggle up to him again. “Me neither.” Shiro ran his fingers through Lance’s hair again. “Is there anything else?”. Lance stayed silent. “I haven't known you very long,” Lance said,” so I can’t trust you with everything yet.” Shiro tried to convince him that he could trust him, but Lance didn’t respond. Shiro decided to leave him be for now. He could get more information when Lance was feeling better. 

Shiro let his head rest on the pillow behind him. He closed his eyes. He was warm and comfortable. Shiro felt sleepy. It wouldn’t hurt to rest a little bit.

Shiro woke up slowly. He was confused for a minute before he remembered the person on his lap was Lance. Lance’s breaths were slow and even. Shiro checked the time. His panic surfaced again. Keith would be home soon. Shiro put his hand on Lance’s arms and gently shook him back and forth. Lance groaned. “Wake up, Lance. You need to go.” Lance’s eyes opened. He glazed eyes stared blankly at Shiro. “My roommate’s going to be home soon,” Shiro told the sleepy Lance. Lance made no move to leave. Shiro sighed. He took Lance’s satchel off the coffee table and put it on Lance. Shiro picked Lance up and carried him to the door. Lance nuzzled into his neck. “Lance, you need to go now.” Lance groaned again. Shiro set him down on the ground. Lance yawned and sat up. He took in his surroundings. He stood up, using the wall for balance. “Bye-bye Shiro. Nice talking to you.” His eyes were still glazed when he left. 

Shiro was uncomfortable with how comfortable he was with Lance. He needed to keep his guard up. Just because he looked and acted sweet didn’t mean he was innocent. Shiro ate some leftovers for dinner and lied down on the couch to wait for Keith. Shiro closed his eyes to rest some more. He awoke to Keith sitting on his feet. Shiro groaned and moved his feet up to his chest. Keith was moving around to do something but Shiro wanted no part in anything that required effort. Keith started shaking him. Shiro wanted to push him away but he was afraid he would do it too hard. He blinked his eyes open to see Keith, who was right next to his face. “Why does the couch smell different?”. Shiro waited for his brain to process the question and to formulate a response. “I had ice cream earlier on the coffee table. And tuna sandwiches”. Keith looked interested. “I finished them.” Keith made an unimpressed face. “It’s not food I’m smelling. Just...nice. I like it.” Keith curled up at Shiro’s feet. Shiro decided this sleeping arrangement was infinitely better than his bed. Shiro’s phone dinged. Pidge sent him a text telling him she figured out all the superhuman victims had pure bloodlines. She asked him how he knew to check their genealogy. Shiro thought about his response. He told her he wanted to check every possibility and hoped she bought it. He was getting deeper and deeper in this cycle of lies. If keeping the Blue Lion free was the cost of catching the Galra, Shiro was willing to pay. Who was he kidding, he had formed some kind of attachment to Lance. He would hate for Lance to go to prison. There was no use thinking about it. If he didn’t think about it, maybe it would go away. 

A week later, Shiro drove with Keith to an empty parking lot surrounded by trees and an abandoned church. They stepped out of the car and joined Allura and Hunk. They chatted for ten minutes until another car pulled up. Matt and Pidge stepped out. “Sorry we're late, someone took too long getting ready,” Pidge said. Matt stuck out his tongue at her. Pidge walked up to Shiro and looked at him expectantly. 

“We’re going to start the training without you using your power. I don’t want you to rely too heavily on it,” Shiro said. Pidge rolled her eyes. “If they can’t see me, they can’t get me,” Pidge replied. Shiro knew otherwise, but he also knew Pidge was the type who needed to see something for herself before she believed it. 

“Alright Pidge, go ahead and go invisible. Keith will be trying to find you, and if he does, you have to train my way.” Pidge looked surprised that she got her way so easily. She smirked and turned invisible. Shiro turned to Keith. “Track her down, buddy,” Shiro said. Keith slowly walked to where Pidge had just been standing. He scanned his surroundings. Pidge may not be visible to the naked eye, but Keith was an excellent tracker. He slowly moved in the direction of Shiro’s car. He walked at an easygoing speed for a few minutes, before he darted forward. Shiro heard a high pitched shriek, and then Pidge reappeared. “How did you know where I was?”. 

Keith released Pidge. “I could hear your footsteps and a few other things tipped me off.” 

Pidge sat down on the asphalt. She looked at Shiro. “Okay, fine. I’ll do it your way. Now what.” Shiro smiled. Pidge was quick to adapt when she learned something new. 

“Your power will be useful, but you don’t want to overly rely on it. I’m going to teach you some basic self-defense. Allura will be the one physically training you.” Shiro wished he could be the one to help Pidge directly, but he wouldn’t dare even pretend to fight Pidge. She was so small. One hit from him would break her bones. She wouldn’t be able to train with Hunk for a while. Keith was a little wild, so he might go too hard on her. Shiro directed Pidge to lie on the ground and Allura to lie on top of her. 

“Okay, Pidge. The enemy has you on the ground. I’m going to teach you how to throw them off.” Shiro directed Pidge to hook her leg over Allura’s thigh. Pidge used all her body weight to try to flip them over but failed. She huffed in annoyance. “It’s alright Pidge, try again. You can’t expect to be perfect on the first try,” Shiro said. Pidge put her leg back on the ground. She stayed still for a few minutes. She tried again and managed to throw Allura a little bit to the side. Pidge quickly hooked her leg on Allura’s thigh and swung herself on top in one smooth movement. Shiro clapped. “That’s great, Pidge! You did it!” Pidge extended a hand to Allura to help her up. “We’re going to practice that move in the future, but right now we’ll start learning some other things, too.” Shiro showed Pidge the proper stance to throw a punch and reminded her to keep her thumb outside her fist. He held out his palms flat and let Pidge punch them. He barely felt any pressure, but her form was good, so they could work on it. Allura demonstrated a few simple kicks. Pidge fell over on every try. They unanimously decided kicks were a bad idea for now.

“There are some easy things that can help you in a fight,” Keith said. Keith told Pidge to step on people’s feet, go for the eyes or temples, or knee them in the crotch. Pidge seemed most interested in Keith’s fighting style. 

“You know, I was thinking...” Hunk said. Everyone gave him encouraging looks and nods. “I may be invulnerable to attacks...but what Shiro said about relying on your power too much struck a chord with me. I think I should learn some things as well.” 

“I think that’s an excellent idea, Hunk. I think you should practice with me,” Shiro said. Shiro didn’t add that he didn’t want Hunk to accidentally hurt anyone. No one wanted a sad Hunk. Shiro showed Hunk the same things he showed Pidge. He didn’t let Hunk punch his hands, though. That would hurt. Shiro personally felt that it was fine for Hunk to rely on his power, because unlike Pidge, Hunk was invulnerable to physical damage. Pidge’s invisibility could be thwarted by a number of things, but Hunk’s iron skin should be invulnerable to anything. Shiro was rather worried about Pidge. She had been prepared to do the training while she was invisible. That would give a great advantage in some fights, but not others. If someone had heat vision, they would know where she was. Someone with good hearing like Keith could track her. Hell, if someone threw flour at her they would be able to see her. She needed to work on her self defense. Things had been getting serious lately, and they couldn’t afford to pick up Pidge’s slack. Shiro hoped she was willing to work to become a superhero. She couldn’t learn it all in one training session like she could scientific endeavors. While Shiro showed Hunk a few kicks, he considered who he would pair Pidge with for missions when she was finished with her training. Keith and Pidge got along well, and they would make an excellent stealth team. Allura could fight and Pidge could provide support. They were both headstrong, so that might not be a good combo. Shiro could also fight well, but wouldn’t mind some backup. Hunk didn’t go out in the field, but if he did they might make a good team. Hunk could beat up people easily, and Pidge would be able to sneak around and get information. Of course, Pidge could also use that tactic working with Shiro. Shiro decided he would figure it out later. There would be plenty of time before Pidge officially became a superhero. 

After Hunk and Allura left, Matt pulled Shiro to the side. Keith loitered near Shiro’s car. Pidge hopped into Matt’s car. Shiro pulled Matt into a hug. “Oh, hug. Nice. But I wanted to talk to you,” Matt said. Shiro released Matt. 

“My parents keep telling me to convince Pidge to go home; they keep telling me they never thought she would actually leave. They say that they will allow her to be a superhero if she comes home. I tell Pidge everything they say, but she’s still mad at them. I just wish my parents would leave me alone about it.” Shiro sighed. “Could you talk to them? They like you. You’re Shiro the hero, everyone likes you,” Matt said. 

Shiro laughed. “I don’t know about that. And...I don’t know if they’ll listen to me since I helped Pidge move out.” Matt gave him puppy dog eyes. Shiro had practice resisting those eyes. Matt added a pout. Shiro held strong. Matt’s face turned serious. “You’re Pidge’s hero, you know. She’s always looked up to you. You’re the reason she wants to be a superhero,” Matt said. 

Shiro sighed. If that was true, this was his fault. “Alright, I’ll talk to them. But I make no promises.” Matt winked and finger gunned. “That’s my boy!”. Matt waved and got into his car. Shiro couldn’t believe he had another responsibility. There were just too many things for him to do. He walked over to his car and got in. Keith slid into the passenger seat. “Hi,” Shiro said. Keith looked at him. “How ya doin’, Keefy?”. Keith face wrinkled like he had eaten a lemon. “Matt is a bad influence on you.” Shiro laughed. It was worth it to see the slight blush on Keith’s face.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zoo trip!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I procrastinated so I didn't get to proofread this chapter as much as I would have liked to. I have a plot planned, but there's room for some things to be added if you have any suggestions. As always, I appreciate comments! This chapter isn't as good as usual, so I'm going to update in two weeks instead of one to give myself a break to get back in the writing groove. 
> 
> my Tumblr is @voltronfanblog

Chapter 7

Shiro had missed Allura, he really had. They had been without her only a few weeks but already their group dynamic had shifted. Everyone felt closer together after all the drama they had been through, and the fact was that Allura wasn’t there with them. Shiro knew he shouldn’t resent her, knew she was just visiting her family, but she wasn’t there when they all needed her. Shiro needed to fix it. He would get everyone to bond again. He needed a group activity that would bring everyone together. He considered the options. They could go to the beach, but Keith didn’t like how bright it was. They could go to a theme park, but Hunk wouldn’t have any fun with his motion sickness. Shiro had the perfect idea. He thought of Keith’s smile when looking at the hippo’s on TV. Shiro texted the group chat. 

[Shiro] We should get together to bond as a team. Does the zoo sound good?

Pidge usually complained about going anywhere, but even she was excited to go to the zoo. Pidge checked with Shiro about inviting Matt. Even though they teased each other and competed constantly, Pidge and Matt were close. Shiro supposed Pidge would want to spend more time with her brother since she wasn’t spending any with her parents. Matt said he had school Monday through Friday so only weekends were good for him. Keith said he didn’t have work this weekend so he was good too. Everyone else had a flexible schedule, so they agreed on Saturday. Shiro was grateful Hunk, Pidge, and Allura were free most of the time to hang out. He hated scheduling things. 

That Saturday, Shiro put on sunscreen, a button-up Hawaiian shirt, and jeans. He would wear the shirt, but he wouldn’t stoop so low as to wear cargo shorts. Shiro applied a liberal amount of sunscreen and put it in his small backpack. He added a floppy hat to complete the look. Keith came out of his room wearing a black t-shirt and matching black skinny jeans. His hair was up, but a few strands hung loose. “Keith, you’re going to get heatstroke if you wear that. Put on some shorts,” Shiro said. Keith switched into his grumpy mode. He crossed his arms. “I don’t own any shorts.” That explained a lot. Shiro sent Keith back into his room to put on a tank top instead. Shiro insisted he did not wear all black, so Keith put on a red one. Shiro noticed he switched his black hair tie to a red one to coordinate. They also matched his red barefoot shoes. Shiro didn’t know Keith cared about his appearance that much. Shiro handed Keith the sunscreen. Keith applied it without protest. Shiro put the sunscreen back in his bag. 

“You excited?” Shiro asked.

Keith smiled. “Yeah. I’ve never been to a zoo a few times before when I was little.” Shiro wanted to find out where else Keith hadn’t been. Shiro could take Keith anywhere he wanted to go. 

They took Shiro’s car to the zoo. Parking wasn’t too expensive, but the tickets into the zoo were. Allura was already there, and everyone else arrived soon after. Everyone was looking good. Allura, of course, was wearing a fashionable outfit. She had on a bright yellow sundress and her straw hat had a matching yellow ribbon. Her long hair was in a braid down her back. Matt, Pidge, and Hunk wore t-shirts and jeans, but they could pull off cute casual. Matt had his hair in a ponytail. Pidge had a small white floppy hat with embroidered fish. Shiro was relieved to see that she was doing well and not stressed about moving in with Hunk. Shiro made everyone put on sunscreen. Shiro remembered when Pidge was little and refused to put on sunscreen at the pool. She got a huge burn on her back and was miserable for a week. He wasn’t letting that happen again. Shiro and Allura split the cost of everyone’s tickets. Pidge and Hunk didn’t make much money, and Matt didn’t make any at all, so Shiro and Allura didn’t mind paying. They all walked over a bridge that had a small stream underneath. The only animals it contained were minnows and frogs, but people still took photos on it. Shiro surveyed the map of the zoo. He wanted to find the most efficient way to view all the exhibits. Pidge complained that he needed to hurry up. Shiro decided they would see the indoor exhibits last when it was hotter out. They could explore the exhibits left to right for maximum efficiency. Shiro led them down the path. The first thing they got to see was ring-tailed lemurs. They jumped from branch to branch wildly. Tall trees shaded them from the sun. Allura thought they were charming. Keith said the way they moved and looked was untrustworthy. They walked through the bird exhibit. Keith was uninterested in the bird’s colorful plumage. He remarked that some of the birds looked particularly tasty. Matt liked the laughing kookaburra for the funny sounds it made. Pidge liked the secretary bird. She said the way it looked expressed how she felt on the inside. Pidge and Matt started sniggering. They arrived at the capybara exhibit. Two capybaras swam lazily in the water. A bird sat atop one of them. Keith was the most excited. He heard of them from his favorite nature show, but he had never seen one in person. Hunk also liked them. He was fascinated by how friendly they were with other species. Everyone took turns taking pictures in front of them. They walked until they stood in front of the porcupine exhibit. The porcupine was eating a yam. Shiro always thought porcupines were supposed to be scary but this one was adorable. They stayed until the porcupine was done with her yam. They were making good progress looking at all the unusual and interesting animals but then they had to stop for 20 minutes while Keith looked at the snow leopards. The adult female snow leopard had three cubs and Keith was enthralled by them. Shiro knew if the glass wasn’t there Keith would be attempting to pet them. There was no way Keith could resist kittens. Everyone was getting hot so they took a break for lunch at Crusty’s Pizza. After lunch, they went back on the path to look at more animals. Pidge and Matt stopped and took pictures of the tapir because it was ‘prime meme material’. It looked like a cross between a pig and an elephant. Finally, they reached the exhibit that made Shiro decide to come here in the first place. The thick glass allowed them to see under the water. A group of hippos stood on the land and grazed on hay, lettuce, and vegetables in troughs. Underwater, a baby hippo suckled on her mom for milk. Fish swam by. Keith’s face and hands were pressed against the glass. His eyes darted everywhere as he attempted to look at all the hippos at once. Keith was smiling bigger than Shiro had ever seen him do before. Shiro would rather look at Keith’s smile over all the animals in the zoo. Everyone was interested for a full ten minutes, but then they started shuffling impatiently. Shiro let them go on ahead to explore the reptile exhibit while he stayed with Keith. Keith was oblivious to Shiro’s presence. Every ounce of his being focused on the hippos. Shiro watched as a large hippo walked towards them under the water and looked directly at Keith. Keith lifted one hand off the glass and waved. The hippo looked at him for a few minutes, then swam away. Shiro stayed with Keith for another 20 minutes while Keith intently watched the hippos. When Shiro’s legs started aching and he felt he could no longer stay still he placed his hand on Keith’s shoulder. “Hmm?” Keith said without looking away. “Keith, we’ve been here over 30 minutes. We should go.” Keith didn’t move from his position. Shiro’s hand was still on his shoulder. He gently turned Keith around so he was looking at Shiro. Keith went from smiling widely to frowning. “I don’t want to leave yet,” Keith said. “We can come to the zoo again, anytime you want. We should catch up to the others now.” Keith crossed his arms and looked to the side. He huffed. “Fine. But only if you take pictures. And we have to come back soon.” Shiro took pictures of them together in front of the hippos, and then they continued along the path. They entered a flat stone building. It was cool inside, which was a welcome relief. Shiro and Keith glanced at some reptiles before they left. A thick green snake moved along a log. Lizards crawled across their enclosures. A few frogs made an appearance. Frogs weren’t reptiles, but they needed to go somewhere so the zoo management put them in the reptile house. Reptiles were cool, but they had to catch up to the group. 

They passed by a petting zoo with goats and entered the gift shop. Shiro was relieved to see Allura looking at some postcards. “We thought you had gotten lost,” Allura said. Shiro told her they just spent some extra time with the hippos. Shiro scanned the shop. He saw Hunk looking at clothes to the right side of the shop, and Matt in the corner trying on animal hats. He couldn’t see Pidge, but she was about the size of the display shelves so that was to be expected. Shiro walked around the store. Nothing particularly interested him. He looked at some cute glass animals. A multicolored chameleon had a curving tail and a smile. He liked it, but he wouldn’t know what to do with it. He could easily crush it by mistake. He spotted Pidge walking out of a rack of clothing. He waved to her and didn’t question it. He didn’t want to know what nefarious business she was conducting inside a clothing rack. He walked over to Keith and saw he was holding a purple stuffed hippo at eye level. Shiro smiled and lifted the hippo out of Keiths’ grasp. Keith looked at him with such anger that he feared for his life. “I’m going to buy it for you,” Shiro said hastily. Keith’s anger melted into a smile. Keith hesitantly shuffled forward and wrapped his arms around Shiro. Shiro was suddenly very thankful that he had thought to bring Keith to the zoo. Keith usually didn’t give Shiro physical affection. Before Shiro could reciprocate, Keith pulled away. Shiro encouraged Keith to look around to see if there was anything else he wanted. Keith walked toward Matt and the animal hat display. Shiro glanced at the stuffed animals. He didn’t expect to see anything that interested him, but he saw a blue stuffed cat. He picked it up and looked at the tag. He was right, it was a blue lioness. It had a cute little cat face that made Shiro want to squeeze it. He shouldn’t buy it. There was no reason to. Except...maybe he could use it to gain Lance’s trust and affection. Then he would give Shiro whatever information he was holding back. That would be useful to get information. Yes. He should get it. Shiro glanced around. No one was looking at him. He went to the counter and bought the stuffed animals. Shiro put the stuffed animals in his backpack. He didn’t want his team to see him holding a blue lion. They might get suspicious. Probably not, but it was best to be cautious. Shiro walked around to check on the others. Matt was wearing a frog hat with bulbous eyes. It looked like it was made for him. Matt could pull off that look like no other. Keith was gesturing emphatically while Matt was nodding along. “...what an outrage! The best animal there is, and they don’t have one. I’ll have to find a hippo hat elsewhere.” Shiro snorted. He wouldn’t mind finding Keith a hippo hat. That would be adorable. Shiro gave Matt money to buy the frog hat. Pidge appeared from behind a rack of magazines and demanded Shiro also buy her something. He was going to anyway, but he gave her a stern talking to about being polite. Pidge showed him an identical frog hat to Matt’s and a stuffed alligator in her hand. Shiro gave her the money. He saw Matt turn around at the register and gasp when he saw his little sister was buying a matching hat. Allura stood in line. She struggled to balance the load of things she was carrying. Shiro rushed over to help her. She handed him clothing, magazines, and postcards, and many other items. He would swear she was trying to buy every item in the store. Shiro lifted it all easily. Allura sighed in relief. Shiro raised an eyebrow at her. “I just love shopping,” Allura explained. Once Matt and Pidge finished their purchases Shiro set all the items on the counter. The cashier kept her smile in place but her eyes showed true fear at the number of items. “You two must really love animals. Is any of this for a child? I can throw in a free bath toy,” she said in a friendly tone. Shiro shifted uncomfortably. She must have assumed Shiro and Allura were a married couple. Allura tensed for a second but then resumed her air of elegance. “No, this is for my parents and me,” Allura explained. The cashier loaded all the items into bags. “Have a nice day!” she called after them. Shiro carried most of the bags for Allura. Allura told him Hunk insisted on buying his own shirt, so there was no need for Shiro to worry about buying him anything. Everyone got something. Allura got many somethings, in fact. He had been relieved to hear some of it was for her family. How much of it, though? She could only be giving keychains to her parents and keeping the rest for herself. Shiro was good friends with Allura but he now felt scared of her. She was a shopping monster. Matt wore his frog hat out of the store, tags and all. Pidge handed Shiro her floppy hat and put on the frog one to match her brother. She looked like a mini Matt. Shiro felt the urge to pick her up and squeeze her but he refrained. Shiro handed Pidge’s floppy hat to Matt. Allura plucked a cheetah print scarf out of a bag and wrapped it around her neck despite the hot weather. Shiro brought scissors out of his backpack and cut the tag off for her. What could he say, he was always prepared. He offered to cut the tags off Matt and Pidge’s hats but they told him it was a fashion statement. Hunk looked very pleased with his shirt. It showed a capybara standing in water with a bird perched on its head, just like they saw in the enclosure. Everyone said their goodbyes and headed in opposite directions. When Shiro got in the car he sent all the pictures he took to the group chat. He pulled the hippo plushie out of his backpack and handed it to Keith, and then put his pack in the backseat. Keith hugged the hippo tightly. “Did you have fun today?” Shiro asked. Keith looked up and smiled. Keith was being so soft and cute today. Shiro needed to incorporate more hippo and cat-related things into their lives. “Yeah, today was fun.” Keith sat back and closed his eyes. It had been a long day. Keith looked cute with a small hippo in his arms. Shiro drove them home. He felt more content than he had for a while. Shiro pulled up outside their apartment building. He put on his pack and then went to the passenger side of the car and opened the door. Keith had great hearing but right now he was dead to the world. Shiro carefully lifted him out of his seat. Keith made a small sound but didn’t move. Shiro was always picking up cute boys nowadays. Hah. People stared at him when he entered the building but he ignored them. In the elevator an elderly woman eyed him suspiciously. Neither of them said anything. When Shiro got to his door he shifted to holding Keith with one hand and unlocked the door. He turned sideways and shuffled inside. He opened Keith’s door and set Keith on the bed. Keith turned over and shifted to get comfortable. He hugged the hippo as he slept. Shiro got out his phone and took a picture. He couldn’t resist, it was too cute. He would show Keith the picture tomorrow and see what he thought. He wouldn’t keep the picture if Keith didn’t want him to. 

Shiro slept well. He stretched and got out of bed. He made pancakes for breakfast. He poured the batter onto the pan. As if summoned by the smell of food, Keith walked into the kitchen. He was wrapped in a blanket like he usually was in the morning. Keith hated mornings. “Hey, Keith. Could you get out the maple syrup?”. Shiro flopped the first batch of pancakes on the plate. Keith grabbed the plate and sat down to eat. Shiro snuck a glance at him. Keith’s face and hands were covered in maple syrup. There was no silverware on the table. Shiro turned back to the pan and made more pancakes and gave those to Keith, too. Shiro made three more batches. He put all of them on his own plate but let Keith steal one. Keith poured some syrup on it and stuffed it into his mouth. Shiro got himself a fork. He wondered why Keith’s father allowed him to have such bad table manners. Maybe Keith’s mother was like that, too. Shiro knew he should be disgusted as he saw maple syrup drip down Keith’s chin, but he just felt affection. He took a napkin and dabbed at Keith’s chin. He set the napkin on the table. Keith tilted his head to the side. Cute. Shiro used his fork to hold a bite of his pancake up to Keith’s mouth. Keith processed for a second and then lunged forward to grab it off his fork. Shiro felt an overwhelming sense of deja vu. Did all cute boys act like this? Shiro could get behind that. It was strange but endearing. Shiro brought his fork back towards himself as Keith finished swallowing the bite. Keith looked at him expectantly. Shiro just had to go and feed the wild beast. Shiro offered Keith another bite. Keith moved quickly but not as violently as he had previously. Shiro was going to leave it there and start eating his pancakes but Keith was staring at him with wide puppy dog eyes. His lower lip jutted out slightly. Dammit. He could resist when Matt did that, but not Keith. He let Keith have another one of his pancakes and saved the last few for himself. “My boss says I can take the night shift on Monday,” Keith said. “Oh, I’m happy for you,” Shiro said. Keith actually wanted the night shift. That was when he was most awake. Shiro smiled as he remembered yesterday. He pulled out his phone and showed Keith the picture of him sleeping with the hippo. Keith didn’t look creeped out, so that was good. “Thanks for carrying me in,” Keith said. Shiro blushed. Keith went back to lurking in his room. Who knows what he did in there. He checked the group chat. Everyone sent him pictures of yesterday’s adventure. Most of the pictures were with animals, but there was also one of Matt and Pidge striking funny poses while wearing the frog hats. Allura sent a selfie of herself because she did her makeup and she wanted everyone to see. Shiro knew certain things about makeup but not enough to understand what all the products were or how to use them. He complimented Allura’s eyeshadow. Everyone else praised Allura’s appearance. Allura responded with hearts. Yesterday was fun. He still felt like something was missing. Oh, Lance. Of course. He bought him that stuffed animal as an impulse buy. Shiro held his face in his hands. He was so stupid. Lance might not even like stuffed animals. Maybe he would feel like it threatened his masculinity. Even if he did like it, he wouldn’t trust Shiro just because he gave him one. What a fool he was. Lance would hate it. Now he had a blue lioness stuffed animal and didn’t know what to do with it. Shiro went to his room and got the lion out of his backpack. It was pretty cute. It looked friendly. And it was a blue lion, just like Lance’s villain name. Okay, maybe Lance would like it. If not, Shiro would keep it. He could use a little buddy. He needed to stop freaking out. Shiro called Lance. He didn’t pick up. Shiro called again. Lance answered. 

“What'd you want? It’s too early,” Lance said in a scratchy voice. Shiro pulled his phone away from his ear to check the time. It was ten o clock. 

“It’s not early. Do you want to meet up?”. 

“Mmmph,” Lance said.

Shiro didn’t know what that meant. “Let’s get lunch,” he said. 

Lance made another noise. “It’s my day off you fiend. I don’t have info on the Galra so buzz off,” Lance said. 

Shiro frowned. “I don’t want to interrogate you, I just want to buy you lunch.” 

“Wait, wait, you’re paying? Where are we going?”. Lance sounded more awake now. 

Shiro should have known. Lance worked at a cafe, he probably didn’t make that much. “I’ll take you to Eleanor’s. They have all types of food and good desserts.” 

“I’ve never heard of Eleanor’s but if you take me there and pay for my food for literally no reason I’m game. Meet me in the park.” Shiro and Lance worked out the details. Shiro flopped back onto his bed. He pulled the blue lioness plushie close to himself. He slept well last night, but he still deserved a nap, especially after all that food. He set a timer and rested his head on his pillow. 

It felt like it was a second later when his alarm was going off. Oh no. He only set the alarm as a precaution. He thought he would only stay in bed for ten minutes. Shiro rushed around his room and put on the first clean clothes he saw. He put on his black fancy shoes. He went to the bathroom to brush his teeth and put on deodorant. He washed his face. His shirt was buttoned all the way to the top and it was choking him. He undid a button. Then another one. He brushed his hair. He looked presentable. Shiro went back to his room and picked up his bag. He slipped the blue lioness inside. 

He drove to the park. He saw Lance sitting on a bench and called him over. Lance slipped into the passenger seat. “So, why are you taking me to lunch?”. Right. A reason. Yes. He had one of those. “I just wanted to...see how you’re doing.” 

“What, were you worried about me?”. Shiro looked away. “Oh. You were. I’m fine. Sorry about the whole crying thing, I’m good now. Still want free lunch, though.” 

Shiro was worried after Lance had started crying. He hoped Lance really was feeling better and wasn’t lying to him. Shiro drove off towards Eleanor’s. He stopped in an alleyway a few blocks away. He smirked at Lance and went to the backseat. Shiro requested that Lance put up the tinted barrier between them. Shiro changed into his superhero costume and then stepped out of the car. Lance made the most outrageous expression Shiro had ever seen. Shiro started laughing so hard he had to clutch his stomach. Lance got out of the car. He poked Shiro in the chest. “What are you playin’ at, mister?”. Shiro couldn’t stop laughing. “Eleanor’s is reservation only unless you’re a VIP. And I am. Or rather, the Atlas is.” Lance pouted. Shiro ruffled his hair. Shiro led Lance to the front door of the restaurant. They had to move around a fountain to get to the front door. The door was black and lined with gold. There weren’t any windows on this side of the building. Shiro opened the door for Lance. Shiro saw the greeter eye Lance distastefully before he saw Shiro. The greeter’s face turned red. “Good afternoon, sir! How may I help you?”. 

“Table for two, please. Somewhere private.” The man nodded vigorously. His eyes stayed on Shiro. A waitress arrived to take them to their table. “Right this way, sir,” The woman said to Shiro. Shiro didn’t like how they were ignoring Lance. The woman led them to a private room. Wide windows overlooked a courtyard garden. Lance gasped and went to the window to look outside. Shiro watched him with a smile. He seated himself at the table and looked at the menu. Shiro ordered some tea for himself and some water for Lance. Lance could get something else later if he wanted. Lance joined him at the table. 

Shiro was surprised to see he didn’t look happy. “This place is fancy. Why did you take me here?”Lance said. Shiro rubbed the back of his neck. “You were unhappy the last time I saw you. I don’t know you very well, but I know you are usually cheerful. I wanted to check-in.” That was the honest truth. He would like more information and to have Lance’s trust, but he mostly wanted to make sure Lance was taking care of himself. He also just...missed him. Every time he saw lance he had fun. Shiro had been to this restaurant with his family before many times and thought it would be a nice place for Lance to relax. Lance was hesitant to order anything after looking at the prices but Shiro assured him it was no trouble. They sat in silence. Shiro sipped his tea. Why did he think this was a good idea? The only reason Lance talked to him was because they were working together to defeat the Galra. Shiro was considering giving Lance his gift when the waitress returned to take their order. Shiro ordered chicken paella and Lance ordered salmon. Shiro felt awkward being in a restaurant in his superhero costume. Shiro offered Lance his tea. Lance put in three packets of sugar and two creamers. 

“How have you been?” Shiro asked. He didn’t like small talk. 

Lance shrugged. “Fine. Got kidnapped on my day off to a fancy restaurant by a superhero. The usual.” 

Shiro snorted. He covered his mouth with his hand and looked at Lance. 

Lance laughed. “What have you been up to, big boy?” Lance asked. 

Shiro didn’t comment on the nickname. “Good. I had a nice day with my friends recently. Actually, I got something-”. The waitress opened the door to their room. She rolled a cart in and placed their food in front of them. She asked if they wanted anything else and then left. Shiro started eating his paella. It was good, of course. Eleanor’s would never make anything less than the best. Lance didn’t pause between bites of his salmon. Shiro hoped he didn’t choke. Shiro waited until they were both halfway through their meal before speaking again. “The other day when I was with my friends I got you something.” Lance looked up. Shiro picked his bag up from the floor. He reached it and pulled out the blue lioness. He set her on the table so her face was towards Lance. 

Lance froze. “You got me a stuffed animal?”. Shiro looked at his lap and fiddled with his hands. “Well...yeah. She’s a blue lion, so I thought you might like her.” Shiro heard rustling. He looked up and saw Lance was holding the plushie. “I love her. She’s my new bestie.” Lance smiled down at the plushie. Shiro let out a deep breath he was holding. Lance liked the lion. Good. He had no idea why he thought it was a good idea to buy Lance a present. Taking him out to a restaurant and giving him a gift was overkill. 

Lance and Shiro chatted about their weeks. “In the cafe, there was this one lady in her forties who kept hitting on me. I thought it was funny at first but then it started getting worse and she tried to touch me so we had to kick her out. She got banned for life,” Lance said. Shiro set down his teacup. The lady should have stopped flirting after Lance showed he wasn’t interested. How dare she act in such an inappropriate manner. 

“I’m sorry to hear that, Lance. It sounds like you haven’t been having a good week, and here I am bothering you on your day off.” 

Lance shook his head. “Are you kidding? You’re paying for a fancy lunch and you gave me a cute little friend. Today’s made up for my bad week.” Shiro smiled. He felt a rush of affection. Shiro had caused Lance to feel happy. Shiro ate another bite of his paella. He was getting attached. Lance could actually be an awful person and Shiro was taking him out to lunch for no reason and giving him gifts. Looking at Lance smiling softly at the little lion in his hands and walking her across the table, Shiro couldn’t bring himself to think any more bad thoughts about Lance. There was no way this man had an evil bone in his body. “Lance, why do you do crimes?”. Shiro regretted the question immediately. 

Lance ceased moving the lion around. “Well, for starters, some people are really awful and don’t deserve what they have, like Mr. Velveeto. They could use their money to help people, but they don’t, so I make sure it goes to a good place.” Lance took a sip of water. 

“What else?” Shiro asked. 

Lance shrugged. “I trespass to stalk the Galra. That’s about it.” 

If Lance was telling the truth, Shiro was right. Lance was actually a good person. “Why did you name yourself the blue lion, anyway?”. 

Lance laughed. “I was stealing some money from this one trashbag’s house when I got caught. I was wearing a mask and when they asked who I was I panicked and said the first thing that came to mind. My favorite color is blue, and I’m part cat, so I just... I thought it was cool so whenever I got caught I just kept using the name.” 

Shiro couldn’t stop himself from laughing. That was the funniest origin story he had ever heard. “So, what’s with the outfits? Like the booty shorts”. 

Lance looked down at his lap. “People aren't really accepting of men wearing those kinds of things. When people don’t know who I am, I feel like I’m free to wear what I want.” Shiro felt all his happiness leave him instantly. People were making Lance feel like he couldn't wear what he wanted. Shiro was going to find these people and put some sense into them. In a legal way, of course. Maybe. “You can wear whatever you want when you're around me, okay? I promise I won’t judge you,” Shiro assured Lance.  
Lance gave him a shy smile. “Thanks, Shiro. Are you suggesting we hang out again sometime?”. Shiro opened his mouth and then closed it. He hadn’t thought that through. 

“I would like that,” Shiro finally said. Lance beamed. Shiro took the last bite of his paella and leaned back in his chair. Today was a good day. 

“I actually just thought of something I forgot to mention. The Galra are using the cocaine profits to fund their experimentation, so if we disrupt that we might slow that down,” Lance said. Shiro’s eyes widened. He didn’t know it was cocaine. “That’s a great idea, Lance. Next time you get info on more drug deals, let me know.” Lance nodded. 

They finished their meals and left the restaurant. Shiro dropped Lance off at the park. Lance held up the blue lion plush and waved her paw to say goodbye. Shiro smiled so wide his mouth started hurting. He waved back to Lance and then drove home. Keith emerged from his room to greet him. “Where did you go?”. Shiro ran through possible excuses. He came up blank. He stared into Keith’s eyes. He felt it getting more awkward the longer he didn’t respond. “I went...to see my old physical therapist. For a check-up.” 

Keith stared at him. “Why are you wearing your fancy shoes?”. Shiro fumbled for an answer. “We went to lunch afterward. To celebrate my recovery.” Shiro nodded as if that made it more believable. 

“Okay.” Keith turned around and went back to lurking in his room. Shiro sighed. He was sneaking around behind his friend's backs. He was defying the law, the law which he had sworn to uphold. Now that shiro thought about it, the law wasn’t doing much good. Lance was right. The rich were hoarding money while others starved. The Galra still kidnapped people and dealt with drugs, and the police weren't effectively stopping it. The police just handed all the villainous activity over to the superheroes and expected them to take care of it. The Galra didn’t even technically classify as villains. A villain was one superhuman person who committed crimes. The police had no intel on whether all the Galra were superhuman or not. The police were so lazy they just handed all the hard work to the superheroes. And what did the police do instead? Try to catch people running red lights instead of actually doing anything meaningful. Shiro went to his room. He would make sure Pidge got the training she needed to become a superhero fit to protect the civilians of silicon valley. If the police weren't going to effectively protect the civilians, Shiro would do it himself. Lance would be a key factor. He was collecting intel somehow which was essential to their success. If Shiro could convince his friends that the law wasn’t the end all be all, he could introduce them to Lance. Until recently, shiro had thought the law was everything. It provided the rules for a functioning society and kept everyone safe. However, if people were not upholding those laws, they were useless. Shiro considered how he was going to try to introduce lance to his team. Keith would be last since he disliked the Blue Lion. Hunk and Pidge were neutral, so they could be first. Allura was a wild card. He wasn’t sure how she would react. If anyone reacted badly, they could destroy everything. He would discuss it with Lance first. It would be easier to do everything if Shiro didn’t have to sneak around and lie all the time. Shiro sat on the couch and turned on Keith's favorite nature show. Keith came out of his room ten minutes later and sat next to Shiro. He knew that would work. Shiro scooched closer to Keith. Keith didn’t move. Shiro casually reached his arms up and put one behind Keith on the couch. Keith tensed for a second then relaxed back into his arm. Shiro wanted to do a fist pump. Keith rested his head on Shiro's shoulder. Shiro held perfectly still. He didn’t want to move and make Keith move. He could feel Keith's soft hair brushing against him and hear Keith's steady breathing close to his ear. Shiro watched the show with Keith. The program was about primates this time, which disappointed Keith. Keith wasn’t interested in primates. Shiro switched the channel to a different nature show. This one didn’t give as many facts every episode, but it was still good. This one showed a herd of gazelles running through a river and avoiding crocodiles. Keith liked this one better. One baby gazelle got left behind the others. “No,” Keith whispered. The baby walked back and forth nervously, looking at the line of crocodiles waiting in the river. The gazelles on the other side all raced back into the water and ran wildly in different directions. The alligators stumbled in different directions. One gator got its jaws around an adult male. The baby gazelle raced across the river and rejoined the herd. Shiro looked down at Keith. There was something about feeling the weight of Keith against him that made him want to stay here forever. Shiro slowly tucked a lock of Keith's hair behind his ear. Keith closed his eyes. Shiro shut off the TV. He kept his hand on Keith's head. He didn’t know how long they stayed like that. Shiro was starting to think Keith was asleep until he spoke. “We should go visit Snail again.” Shiro thought to mention to Keith they were also visiting the rest of his family but he didn’t want to spoil the moment. “I'll mention it to mom and Obaasan. I’m sure Snail is eager to see you again.” Shiro missed her too. He hadn’t gotten a chance to hang out with her last time he went over for dinner. She was too lazy to play but she enjoyed cuddling. She was a very fluffy cat. Shiro also missed his mother and obaasan. He wanted a chance to chat with his mom one on one again. She always helped him understand what the best course of action was or let him vent about what was going on in his life. He couldn’t ask for a better mother. With everything going on in his life, he really just wanted to hang out with his mom again. Shiro sent his mom a text asking if she was free to hang out soon. He also requested pictures of Snail to tide over Keith’s obsession.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro hangs out with Pidge for a while. You guys finally get the good sheith content ;)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I usually say I'm up for critique but I've been going through a lot lately and would prefer no criticism at this time. 
> 
> I hope you like it! If you have any suggestions for things you want to happen, let me know! I do have a plot planned, but I'm willing to add in some things. :)
> 
> also: slightly nsfw

Shiro posted all the zoo pictures on Facebook. That was a fun day. He asked Keith if he wanted to go see Shiro’s family for lunch, but Keith said he was busy. Shiro couldn’t imagine what he was doing. He wasn’t at work, and he would have told Shiro if he was meeting Pidge. He decided not to worry about it. He walked down to the lobby and out the front doors of the building. He shaded his eyes from the sun. He always forgot his sunglasses. He turned left to get to the park and saw a man halfway down the block from him, looking straight at him. He couldn’t see features from this distance, but he could tell the man was in a suit. The man turned away. Shiro ran full speed towards him but the man rounded the corner before he could catch him. Shiro looked, but the man was gone. Shiro sighed and texted Pidge what happened. Sure, it could have just been a regular guy, but that was too much of a coincidence. The man was galra, he knew it. He texted Lance about if he was okay with Shiro telling his friend Pidge about his identity. Shiro specified he was talking about his friend Pidge, who Lance had talked to briefly over the phone when shiro was in the car. Lance wasn’t as receptive as shiro had hoped. Lance thought it was best that as few people knew his identity as possible. Shiro thought for a moment. Lance didn’t want his identity to be known, but it would be easier if Shiro’s teammates were in the loop. Shiro asked Lance if it would be alright if he informed Pidge he was working with the blue lion but did not disclose his identity. Lance was hesitant but agreed. Shiro invited Pidge over for a Monday night sleepover when Keith would be working the night shift. He told her it was better not to invite Matt or Hunk so Shiro and Pidge could have some one-on-one bonding time. He hoped he didn’t sound like a creep. Pidge agreed but only on the condition that Shiro provided snacks, pilows, and blankets. It was times like these that Shiro was glad Pidge had subpar social skills. If he asked any other 19-year-old girl to have a sleepover with him, she would call the cops. Of course, Shiro and Pidge had known each other for a long time, but it was weird to not have someone else in the house. He hoped Pidge didn’t tell Matt Shiro had invited her for a sleepover without him. He was probably just overthinking things. They both knew he was gay. They also knew him well enough to know he would never do anything inappropriate to a youngster. 

Shiro took his morning jog and then went to the store and stocked up on munchies. He added in some regular groceries since they were running low. They had blankets and pillows in the house already, but Shiro saw a deep blue blanket with planets and moons on it and he couldn’t resist. When shiro got home, he hid all the snacks in his closet. He knew Keith would find them otherwise. Keith was generally a loyal, trustworthy person, but that all changed when food was involved. Keith would betray him for a snickers. Shiro vacuumed the house and swept the kitchen floor. He couldn’t be bothered to mop. He sponged the kitchen counters and the sink clean and then took a shower. The rest of Shiro’s day went on as usual. He made dinner, ate, watched TV, then went to bed. When Keith left for work the next day at 7 in the evening, Shiro set everything up. He spread blankets and pillows over the couch and put all the snacks on the coffee table. He texted Keith to let him know Pidge was staying over. Shiro went outside the building to greet her. Hunk got out of the car and greeted him. He informed Shiro that Pidge had already eaten a nutritious dinner. Pidge was struggling with a bag half her size of potato chips, a sleeping bag, and a small stuffed alligator. Shiro brought Pidge up to his door and opened the door with a mock bow. Pidge rolled her eyes and entered. Pidge gasped when she saw the couch strewn with blankets and pillows and the coffee table covered in snacks. She set the potato chips next to the table and tore open a bag of sour patch kids, which she started eating immediately. Shiro opened the bag of potato chips. They considered a few movies but decided on watching Mulan. Shiro waited until the credits were rolling and Pidge had three empty bags of candy before he decided to broach the subject. He paused the credits and turned to Pidge. Pidge continued snacking. “Pidge, I need to tell you about something. You know how I’m always telling you not to do anything illegal?”. Pidge’s head snapped up. “I didn’t do anything!”. Shiro frowned. That was suspicious, but he could let it go for now. “No, it’s not that. I’ve been doing something.” Pidge’s hand stilled in the snack bag. She sat frozen. 

“Our number one priority is catching the galra, and I think extreme measures are necessary. I took matters into my own hands,” Shiro said.

Pidge blinked rapidly. “You what now?”. 

“The Blue Lion is fighting against the galra, just like us. I’ve been...contacting him. For information.” 

Pidge straightened her glasses, although they were already in place. She stared blankly at him. 

“I'm still on your side,” Shiro continued. Pidge took a handful of candy and shoved it in her mouth. 

“He’s how I knew to ask you about the genealogy of the victims, which led to you finding out about the pure bloodlines.” Pidge finished her mouthful of candy and shoved more in her mouth. Shiro was getting more and more nervous the longer she didn’t speak. Pidge swallowed. The blank look on her face disappeared. 

“Do you know for sure he doesn’t work for the galra?” Pidge finally said. 

Shiro thought about Lance. His muscles relaxed and he leaned back into the couch. “Yes. I can tell. I spent a lot of time with the galra, and I know for sure he isn’t one of them.” 

Pidge nodded. “Okay. So he isn't galra, and you’ve been getting information from him. Is there anything else I should know?”. 

“The drug the galra are selling is cocaine, and they are using the money to fund their experiments.” 

Pidge nodded. “How have you been contacting each other?”. 

“We...we exchanged phone numbers. And we have also been meeting in person.” Pidge chewed a gummy worm thoughtfully. 

“How is he getting his information?”. 

“Uh...I don’t know. But he has some friends. That reminds me, that mission at Mr. Velveeto’s house, weren't you watching through the cam?”.

Pidge shook her head.”It was a small mission, so no. Keith told us what you did. Why? Who are his friends? And if you don’t know where he’s getting his information, how do you know he isn't galra?”. 

“Oh, nothing. I don’t know who his friends are. I just know they brought me to the hospital. And I don’t know how he gets his information, but he’s helping us, so he has to be on our side. Also, I can just tell. I know what the galra are like, and he isn’t one.”

“You can ‘just tell”? You should still be careful around him. He’s a villain.” 

Pidge paused to eat more gummy worms. “I can’t believe after all this time of you forcing me not to do anything illegal you were doing it all along.” Pidge grinned like a Cheshire cat. 

Shiro frowned. “I wasn’t doing it all along, it started on that failed drug bust at the park.” 

“You should have told me sooner,” she said. Pidge flopped back on the nest of blankets and pillows on the couch so she was lying down. She picked up her stuffed alligator from the armrest and moved him around wildly. Perhaps she had eaten too much sugar. Shiro slid bags of candy under a blanket while she was distracted. He turned on another movie. Pidge got out her iPad. She typed rapidly. Shiro wasn’t bothered by it. He knew she wouldn’t want to watch movies the whole time. She did her own thing sometimes. There was a bonus side to Pidge’s hyper-focus. He gently placed the alligator Pidge had set down on top of her head. Pidge didn’t even blink. Shiro wasn’t focusing on the movie either. It was a rom-com that just came out and it had raving reviews but shiro thought the comedy was bland and repetitive. Shiro scrolled through social media and looked at cat pictures. Ah yes, that’s the stuff. Shiro let the movie stay on for background noise. After thirty minutes Shiro looked up to see that Pidge was still typing and the alligator was still on her head. Shiro used his phone to take a picture and sent it to Matt. Matt texted back a reaction image of himself doing finger guns. He was wearing the frog hat. Shiro saved it to his camera roll for future use. Pidge shifted to grab a bag of veggie straws and the alligator fell off her head. She looked at the alligator in surprise, then gave Shiro a knowing look. Matt and Shiro had been doing the ‘put stuff on Pidge while she hyper focuses’ game for years. She seemed to be halfway present now, so shiro figured they could talk. “Pidge, I know you’re busy with whatever nefarious thing you're doing, but could I convince you to help me build a pillow fort?”. Pidge looked up from the screen. She looked down at her screen, then back at Shiro. She typed rapidly for a minute, then set it down. “How big of a fort are we talking about?”, Pidge said. 

Shiro moved the sofa against the wall to get it out of the way. He brought chairs from the kitchen and put them spaced evenly apart. He threw a blanket over them, creating a cozy blanket den. He put the coffee table on one side to create an entrance to crawl through. He went to his room and got his mattress and comforter and used that for the floor of the fort. The mattress was a little hard to maneuver, but it was easy in terms of weight. The remaining blankets and pillows from the couch all got piled on top. Pidge brought in her sleeping bag and alligator friend. Shiro nudged the bags of candy under the couch with his foot. He put all the other snacks in the center of the fort. He brought a camping lantern out of the closet and set it inside for a nice homey glow. Pidge motioned for him to go over to her. He leaned next to her to look at her screen. She was watching a video of a large man getting covered with puppies. The puppies walked all over him and licked his face and hands. That was the way Shiro wanted to go. Shiro smiled. He noticed the time on the top. 

“Pidge, It’s one AM. Time to go to sleep.” 

Pidge raised her eyebrow. “I’m an adult. I do what I want.” 

Shiro gave her a disapproving look. “As a fellow adult, I am going to bed now inside this nice cozy pillow fort, which means I need complete darkness and silence,” Shiro countered. Pidge responded by putting the comforter over her head. Shiro turned off the lantern. He couldn’t see the light of her iPad through the comforter, but his dad™ senses were tingling. He pulled the comforter down. “I know you’re legally an adult, but your brain is still developing. You need a lot of sleep. Could you please not stay up too late? I know Hunk will be on the warpath if you do.” 

Pidge looked at him. “Okay. I won’t stay up too late. Promise.” Pidge held out her pinky. Shiro stuck out his in return. He let her curl her finger around his and shake it. He was careful to keep his finger still. He didn’t want to break her pinky. Pidge noticed her alligator was resting on top of the comforter. She picked it up and took it with her back under the comforter. Her sleeping bag lay forgotten on the other side of the fort. Shiro pulled blankets on top of himself. He had a king-sized comforter, and Pidge was using the entire thing. He should have known. Shiro was glad to see the space blanket he had bought was still available. He wrapped himself in the stars and fell asleep. 

He woke up late the next day. He assumed Pidge was still asleep since the lump under the comforter was not moving. He looked under the sofa for candy to get a quick snack, but it was missing. He made eggs, toast, and coffee. He went back to the fort and sat next to the lump. “Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey,” he said. The lump shifted. “There’s coffee,” he said. Pidge pulled the covers down. Her hair stuck in every direction, making her look like a hedgehog. Pidge put on her glasses and stretched. She crawled out of the coffee table exit and walked to the kitchen. Shiro followed, but he went out a blanket side. When he got to the kitchen, Pidge was on her knees on top of the counter. She opened the cabinet, got a mug, then crawled over to the coffee pot, still on the counter. She was too short to reach the cabinet from the ground. Shiro got out the milk and poured it for her. She gulped down the hot coffee. She didn’t speak until she had finished it. 

“Mornin’ Shiro,” Pidge said. Shiro refilled her coffee and set it on the table next to her breakfast. They enjoyed a quiet breakfast. Shiro put the dishes in the sink. He could deal with them later. Shiro poured a second cup of coffee and went to Keith's door and knocked. There was no response, so he knocked again. He heard a groan this time. He opened the door and walked to the bed. He noticed that beside the bed on the floor were empty candy bags. So that’s where they went. He should have known. Keith slowly blinked at him. Shiro set the coffee on Keith’s bedside table. Keith squirmed over to it like a slug. He took the coffee and gulped it, just like Pidge had. After a few minutes of Keith’s gulping, he set the cup down. He blinked a few more times, then looked at Shiro. “Why did you wake me up? I could have slept in.” Shiro checked the time. “It’s noon.” Keith grumbled under his breath. “I made breakfast,” Shiro said. Keith slid out of bed. Shiro was alarmed to see more and more of Keith’s skin. He was only wearing boxers.

“No, go back in there.” Shiro gently pushed Keith back into the bed and put the comforter over him. Keith looked at him in sleepy confusion. Shiro got a pair of pants and a shirt from the dresser and handed it to Keith. “Clothes are stupid,” Keith informed him.

“If you’re going to go through a no-clothes phase, please wait until Pidge is gone,” Shiro said. He hoped Keith would continue wearing clothes even after Pidge left. Shiro couldn’t survive being in close proximity to an almost naked Keith. 

He left the room. Keith opened the door a minute later fully dressed and wrapped in a blanket. In the kitchen, they found Pidge playing with her phone. Keith sat down and started shoveling food in his mouth. Shiro sat between them. Keith was more awake after a second cup of coffee. “Did you guys have fun? Your pillow fort looks cool,” Keith said. Pidge looked up at the sound of Keith’s voice. “Yeah, it was fun. Watched Mulan, ate snacks. Good stuff.” Keith nodded. They both went back to their respective activities. Their ability to enjoy each other's company just by being in the same room was a plus for their friendship. Shiro sipped on his coffee. When Keith was done eating and Pidge had woken up fully, she rolled up her sleeping bag and carried a few choice snacks. Keith may have taken the candy from under the couch, but he had not taken the snacks inside the fort. Shiro and Pidge got in the car and started the drive to Hunk’s apartment. They were over halfway there when Pidge panicked. “I left Rover there!”.

“What’s that?” Shiro said.

“My alligator.” She sounded resigned. Shiro thought through possible plans. He could take them back now, and have this be a wasted trip. He could drop Pidge off at Hunks, go back to his apartment, and then go to Hunk’s. Or, he could drop by some other time. “I’ll ask Hunk if I can swing by for dinner tonight, and I’ll bring Rover then. How does that sound?”. 

“That sounds good.” Pidge sounded better than before. When Shiro dropped Pidge off he took Hunk to the side and explained the situation. Hunk was happy to have another person to cook for, and he always made enough for leftovers anyway, so it wasn’t like there would be a lack of food. Shiro knew Pidge got attached to an item sometimes which she would be miserable without. 

When Shiro got home, he was surprised to find that Keith wasn’t in the house. He paid it no mind and took a nice afternoon nap. He returned that evening with Pidge’s alligator and ate a lovely dinner prepared by Hunk. He went home with leftovers. He opened the door of his apartment to find it dark and quiet. “Keith?”. There was no response. He put the food in the fridge and then went into the pillow fort. If Keith liked it, then there was no reason to take it down. No one could tell them not to, it was their apartment. Shiro texted Pidge and asked her if she wanted to meet with the Blue Lion. Pidge didn’t reply for a while, which was unusual for her. She said she would think about it. Shiro flopped back on the mattress and closed his eyes. 

The next day, Keith told Shiro that characters in a show he liked went on a picnic and he told Shiro he wanted to go on one. Shiro agreed to go. Keith was delighted at the idea of an activity that’s entire purpose was to eat food. They went in the evening instead of the morning since Keith had another night shift. They were alone in the park. Keith kept sprinting short distances and then looked back at Shiro, who was holding the picnic basket and blanket. Keith definitely had more energy today than usual. He must have gotten good sleep this morning and afternoon. Shiro noticed he looked more alert and didn’t have bags under his eyes. Shiro guessed some people just preferred to sleep during the day. Keith waited for him in a secluded shady spot surrounded by a group of oak trees and bushes. Shiro set down the basket and spread the blanket on the ground. There were a lot of picnic tables they could use instead, but Shiro wanted to do it the way he had seen in the movies. He saw Keith inching towards the basket so he opened it and took everything out. They had sandwiches, potato chips, pickles, and a chocolate cake Shiro had found at the grocery store. They both dug into the food. Shiro tossed a napkin at Keith’s face. Keith snatched it out of the air and put it on his lap without looking. They both finished a few sandwiches, half of the potato chips, and all of the pickles. Shiro managed to get a hold of the cake before Keith got to it. He sliced two thick pieces for both of them and set them on plates. He purposefully forced a fork into Keith’s hands. Keith looked at it distastefully but started eating using the fork. Shiro sighed in relief and started eating his own cake. When he was halfway done with his he spied Keith reaching for the rest of the cake with his bare hands. Shiro gently pushed his hands away and cut Keith another slice.

“Thanks,” Keith said. He looked disappointed. Shiro wasn’t going to bow down to the evil of eating cake with bare hands, even if it meant resisting Keith’s puppy dog eyes. Shiro put the rest of the cake back in the basket and finished his own off. Shiro was thinking he might start getting ready to go when he noticed Keith. The entire bottom of Keith’s face was covered in frosting. Keith was attempting to wipe off all the frosting with his fingers and eat it. Shiro sighed. He moved closer to Keith. Keith stilled but frowned at Shiro. Shiro took his finger and wiped it across Keith’s cheek. Shiro ate the frosting. Keith gaped at him. 

“That’s my frosting!” Keith said. Shiro could see he was pouting, something Keith rarely did. Shiro grinned. He wiped his finger across Keith’s other cheek. Keith frowned. Shiro held his finger in front of Keith’s lips. “There you go,” Shiro murmured. Keith stared at him. Keith slowly moved forward and licked the frosting off his finger. Shiro thought this was a good idea until he felt Keith’s tongue on his finger. Now he was doubting himself. Keith paused his licking and Shiro thought it was over now but then Keith turned his face and took Shiro’s finger in his mouth. Shiro was going to die. He was going to keel over right here and die on this picnic. It would probably be less awkward if he looked away from Keith instead of staring into his eyes but shiro just wasn’t willing to do that. Keith sucked on his finger. It’s just because of the frosting, Shiro said to himself. Keith is only doing this because he loves food. He repeated this to himself for what felt like hours. It occurred to Shiro that Keith still had frosting on his face and Keith could have been eating that instead. There was also more cake inside the picnic basket. Shiro decided he would reexamine that thought later when he could actually think. Shiro realized that the frosting on his finger had been gone for a few minutes now. He should say something, but Shiro felt physically incapable of speech. His vocal cords must have died or something. Only a small ring of purple surrounded Keith’s massive pupils. His cheeks were pleasantly rosy. When Shiro decided to do this he thought it would only last a few seconds but this was going on a while and now he didn’t know what to think. Finally, Keith slid off his finger. They sat in silence for a while. “Aren’t you going to get the rest?” Keith asked.

Shiro stared at him dumbly. “Huh?”.

Keith smirked. “The rest of the frosting.” Shiro felt light-headed. He moved his hand like a zombie towards Keith’s face. Instead of wiping off the frosting, he held Keith’s chin up. Keith looked back at him. Shiro let out an uneven breath. Keith’s hair was a wild mane. There wasn’t any frosting in it that he could see. The wild locks framed his face beautifully. Shiro rubbed his thumb back in forth in a soothing repetitive motion. Keith leaned into his hand and closed his eyes. Shiro had frosting all over both his hands now. Shiro tried to take even breaths. Okay, he could go over the facts. What had led to this? Keith said he wanted to go on a picnic, and they did. Keith was messy and got frosting everywhere. Shiro decided to be a weirdo and have Keith lick frosting off of Shiro’s fingers. Then, Keith continued to suck on his finger after the frosting was gone. He could ask Keith why he did that. Keith opened his eyes and any semblance of rational thought that had come back to Shiro was lost. Keith’s face was so close that Shiro could feel his breath. Keith’s face was covered in frosting, but that didn’t matter. Keith inched closer. Shiro decided it was time. He just had to go for it. Shiro forced himself to move forward. Shiro felt immediate regret as he smacked his face into Keith’s. Even worse, he had toppled Keith over and he was now on top of him. Well, not exactly. He was holding himself up with the ground around Keith. He quickly moved his face back and looked Keith over for injuries. 

“I’m good, Shiro. You didn’t hurt me.” Shiro sighed in relief. He was surprised to see Keith was smiling, even though that must have hurt him. 

“I’m so sorry.” Keith’s smile dropped. “I don’t know my own strength sometimes,” Shiro quickly added. 

Keith smiled up at him. “S’okay.” Keith wrapped his arms around Shiro’s neck. 

Shiro felt his heart beating rapidly. He lowered himself down slowly. At the last second, he buried his face in Keith’s neck. “Sorry, I-I just got nervous.” Shiro felt like he was being a big baby. He had kissed people before. He had done more than that. Why was this so hard? He knew the answer, but he wasn’t going to admit it. This was all going so fast, he didn’t want to mess it up. He never thought this would happen, especially not now, with no warning. Shiro moved so he was looking down at Keith again. He was happy to see Keith was still smiling. Keith rested his hand on the back of Shiro’s head and dug his fingers into his hair. Shiro was officially dead. He hoped people planned him a nice funeral. Keith gently guided his head down. Shiro felt like screaming but he forced himself not to. Keith paused just before Shiro touched him, allowing Shiro to make the choice. Do it, you dumb bitch, Shiro told himself. He got a burst of adrenaline and moved his head down all the way. He pressed his lips to Keith’s. His lips were warm and soft and Shiro’s instinctual reaction was to move away despite the pleasant feeling. He was feeling so many things at once it was just too much. Shiro ignored this feeling and continued the kiss. Shiro was trying to be polite and have a nice chaste kiss but Keith was kissing him like a wild man. Shiro felt the sting of Keith’s teeth and slowly moved his face away. Keith tried to move up with him but Shiro gently held him away. He needed breathing time. Shiro felt something drip down his chin. He wiped it away and was shocked to see blood on his hand. He thought it was spit. Keith must have bitten him harder then he thought. Keith was sporting a carefree smile. It took a lot to get Keith relaxed. Shiro was grateful to his superstrength for allowing him to do a plank this whole time and not feel any fatigue. Shiro leaned down again to kiss Keith’s cheek. He could feel Keith’s smile get wider. Shiro was feeling impulsive again. He noted where the remaining frosting was and went for a lick. 

Keith made a choking sound. He turned to look at Shiro. “You didn’t tell me you were going to do THAT,” Keith whined. Shiro booped his nose. Keith’s face scrunched up like he had eaten a lemon. Shiro laughed at the look on his face. He lifted himself off of Keith and sat beside him. Keith was content looking up at him from the ground. Keith lazily lifted his hand towards shiro. Shito picked it up and held it with both of his. No matter what had caused Keith to suddenly have affection for him, Shiro was going to keep it that way. They walked home holding frosting-covered hands. 

Keith left to go to work. Shiro lied on his bed and stared at the ceiling with a lovesick grin. He didn’t know how he did it, but he somehow managed to get Keith to like him. He wondered when that started. He didn’t think he had been doing anything different. Shiro went to sleep with high hopes for the future.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little bit of sheith fluff. Then y'all find out about Keith's heritage!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got a beta!

At the beginning of the week, Shiro went about his day in a dream-like state. He did things slowly and messed up simple tasks. He couldn’t stop grinning like a fool. By the end of the week, Shiro was sitting on the couch eating ice cream straight out of the container. He thought things would be different now between them, but not like this. He thought this would mean they would be closer and spend more time together. The reality was the opposite. Keith was spending barely any time in the apartment. When Shiro asked him where he was going, Keith mumbled excuses about dentists. Shiro was beginning to wonder if Keith was regretting what happened. Keith tended to be impulsive. It was possible that the day at the park had been a one-time thing for him. Shiro shoved another spoonful of ice cream in his mouth. It wasn’t fair. He just wanted to spend time with Keith. Shiro mindlessly ate the ice cream until he hit the bottom. He threw the container in recycling and then sprawled out on his bed. He thought he meant something to Keith, but if Keith really cared about him he wouldn’t be avoiding being in the apartment. Shiro was going to have to talk to him. He dreaded what Keith would say. Shiro heard the front door open and footsteps. Shiro thought he might put off talking to Keith until dinner, but Keith opened the door to Shiro’s room. Keith lied down beside him. Shiro turned to look at him. Shiro couldn’t help the smile that crept onto his face. Strands of Keith’s hair had come free of his ponytail. It was getting long, long enough Keith might be mistaken for a girl, but Shiro wasn’t complaining.

“Hey. How was your day?”, Shiro asked. He would ease into the subject.

“Good. Susan brought in these cheese pastry things. I brought one home for you.” The way Keith said home made Shiro’s chest hurt. 

“You haven't been home much lately,” Shiro said. 

Keith looked down at the bed. “I’ve been busy.”

“Doing what?” Shiro pressed. 

“Are you making dinner or am I,” Keith said, still not looking at him. Shiro sat up. He tried to think of a way to say things that wouldn’t make Keith get defensive. 

“Keith, when we went to the park and had that picnic, that meant a lot to me. Honestly, I...I have feelings for you. But if you don’t feel the same, please just tell me.” Keith sat there staring at him like a deer in headlights. 

“Why would you think I didn’t feel that way,” Keith asked quietly. 

“You’ve been avoiding me. You’re never home anymore.”

“That’s not true!” Keith said. “I just...needed to be somewhere else.” 

Shiro shook his head. “That’s literally the definition of avoiding someone, Keith.”

Keith huffed. “I’m not avoiding you. I like you, okay? I want to spend time with you. I’ve just...a thing happened, and now I need to...do something.” 

Keith was an honest person. If he said he wasn’t avoiding Shiro, he believed him, even if the evidence said otherwise. He wasn’t going to let that stop him from getting an explanation. “You never really showed any indication of liking me before, and then all of a sudden you got all flirty with me. Then, you start staying out all the time. I believe you when you say you’re not avoiding me, but I’m going to need an explanation, Keith.” 

Keith glanced between him and the bed. “Fine. But you can’t tell anyone, okay? If you tell anyone then someone I care about will be in danger.” 

Shiro didn’t know what that was supposed to mean but he nodded. “I promise not to tell anyone.” If talking was going to get any of their friends in danger, Shiro would stay silent. 

Keith’s index finger tapped the bedsheet in a consistent rhythm. “I met my- I met my mom.” Shiro sat there, speechless. In all the years he had known him, Keith had never ever mentioned his mom. Shiro thought she was dead or left Keith’s father. 

“She didn’t abandon me. She never stopped loving me.” Keith gave him a shy smile. Shiro didn’t want to burst his bubble but he had trouble believing a woman would stay away for over a decade if she really loved him. As Shiro was running through possible reasons she left he had the thought that Keith’s father may have abused her. Shiro had never seen Heith do anything unkind and Keith always spoke highly of him but it was a possibility. But then again, why wouldn’t she have adopted him once Heith died if that were the case?

“Where was she, then?”. Shiro attempted to keep his voice neutral, although he wanted to find this lady who thought she could abandon Keith and do very illegal things to her (like murder). 

Keith hesitated. “I think she should tell you that herself if she’s comfortable with it.”

Shiro nodded. He hesitantly pulled Keith's hand into his own. “Are you happy?”. Keith smiled and nodded. Keth scooted closer and leaned against Shiro's side. Shiro wrapped an arm around him. Keith was acting happier lately when Shio did see him. He hoped Keith was right about his mom. Keith deserved a good mom. Shiro pressed a kiss to the top of Keith's head. He caught a glimpse of Keith's smile before Keith tucked his face in Shiro's neck. Shiro pulled Keith’s hair tie out and stroked Keith’s hair. Keith leaned into his hand. Shiro heard a small chirping sound. “Did your mom happen to mention your superhuman heritage?”, Shiro asked. 

“If you want to know that you have to ask her yourself.” Keith’s voice was muffled by Shiro’s shirt. Shiro figured that was Keith's way of asking Shiro to meet his mother. 

“Do you want to go out for dinner?” Shiro asked.

“Yes.”

“..on a date,” Shiro clarified. 

“Yes.”

“Romantically?”

Keith sat up and looked at Shiro in the eyes. Keith wrapped his arms loosely around Shiro's neck and pulled him into a kiss. Shiro's thoughts went out the window. He put his hand in Keith's hair and pulled him closer. Shiro kept kissing him as long as he could but it turned out Keith could hold his breath for an extraordinarily long amount of time. Keith looked disappointed when he pulled away. 

Fifteen minutes later they were sitting inside McDiddys. They normally sat outside, but it was a cool evening. Keith was stuffing his face with a burger. Mustard, ketchup, mayonnaise, and relish ran down his face in an unholy mixture. Shiro ate his chicken nuggets and fries without looking at Keith again. When he was finished he finally looked up and saw that Keith had wiped the majority of it off. They went home holding hands. 

Shiro refused to kiss Keith again until after he washed his face and brushed his teeth. Shiro sat down on the couch, but he didn’t turn on the TV. Keith crawled onto his lap and flopped down on his stomach. Shiro rested his hand on top of Keith's head. “So, when do I get to meet your mom?”. 

Keith grunted. “I’ll text her later.” Shiro ran his fingers through Keith’s hair. It was soft and silky. He felt blessed to touch Keith, like he was some kind of elusive animal. Keith looked like he was ready to fall asleep, so Shiro picked him up and brought him to his room. Keith nuzzled into his chest. Shiro gently set him down on the bed. Keith’s eyes opened. 

“Goo’night,” Keith said before closing his eyes again and rolling back onto his stomach. Shiro quietly closed the door behind himself. He couldn’t believe he was actually going to meet Mrs. Kogane. He wondered if Keith got his personality from her because Keith wasn’t anything like his dad. He might have gotten his looks from her, too. Shiro wondered about Keith’s superhuman ancestry. He could have multiple powers, or be a human-animal hybrid. He could be half superhuman, or less. There was no telling what he could be. Shiro had trouble sleeping that night, but for once it wasn’t because he was worried about the future. 

Shiro was woken up by the fire alarm. He jumped out of bed and ran to the kitchen. Keith was standing on a chair and waving a rag at the smoke detector. A few minutes later it shut off. Shiro was grateful for the silence. Keith got off the chair and sat down at the table. Just as Shiro thought, quesadillas sat at their places on the table. This happened every time they made quesadillas. Keith was already stuffing his face. Shiro picked his up and immediately dropped it. It was burning hot. Shiro poured himself some coffee and sipped on it while he waited for his food to cool. Keith was on his third quesadilla when Shiro started eating his. At this rate, Keith was going to have a heart attack before thirty. 

“My mom said you can go to her house today if you want,” Keith said around his quesadilla. Shiro wondered if she remarried. 

“What’s her name?”. Keith mumbled something. Bits of quesadilla came out of his mouth.

“Nevermind. Just tell me when you’re done eating.” 

Shiro hoped Keith's mother would correct Keith’s table manners. His father never could, and neither could Shiro and his family. She was his last hope. 

“Her name’s Krolia.” Shiro had Keith spell her name for him. Keith brought Shiro out to his motorbike and handed him a helmet. Shiro bought himself a helmet once he had been friends with Keith for a few years. Shiro got behind Keith and put his hands around his waist. This part always made him nervous. If he didn’t hold on tight enough, he could fall off, but if he held on too tight he could seriously injure Keith. Admittedly, it was nice to be so close to Keith. Shiro regretted not putting on a jacket. He always wore one when they went on the bike but he forgot. At least he was wearing gloves since they kept them in the compartment. They pulled up in front of a Tudor style two-story house. Instead of a lawn, there was a mini field of wildflowers. Shiro walked up the stone pathway and rang the doorbell. Barking greeted him. He liked the way the front porch had hanging plants on both corners. She must have a green thumb. The door opened and Shiro was surprised to see a young woman. She held back a large black dog that looked like a wolf. Krolia looked like she could be Keith’s sister. The resemblance between them was uncanny. Krolia had short black hair as smooth and silky as Keith's, but Shiro immediately noticed that although the iris’ of her eyes were the same unusual violet's as Keith's, the whites of her eyes were yellow. Shiro sincerely hoped that was related to her being superhuman and not a sign of jaundice. Krolia was also slightly more tan than Keith. Krolia opened the door wider with her leg. Shiro and Keith entered the house, and then Krolia released the hound. The dog ran around Shiro in circles. Shiro held out his hand. The dog sniffed the hand and then started licking frantically. Keith sat down on the floor and let the dog lick his face. 

The interior of the house was just as nice as the exterior. The floors were dark wood and large landscape paintings hung from the walls. A large wooden staircase was immediately opposite the front door, and to the right was a grandfather clock. Shiro wondered what Krolia did for a living. Krolia led them through a doorway to the left and into a large living room. Two fat armchairs were on either side of the sofa. Across from them was a large fireplace. To the left was a floor to ceiling window with a window seat. Shiro knew if his family had a window seat Snail would enjoy taking naps there. Keith sat on the sofa and started munching on snacks on the coffee table which Shiro hadn’t noticed. Kosmo jumped up beside him and looked at the food longingly. Keith fed him a corn chip. Shiro sat beside him at a comfortable distance. Krolia sat in an armchair. She looked Shiro directly in the eyes. 

“It’s nice to meet you, ma’am,” Shiro said. Krolia nodded. 

“Yes. I hear you and Keith are very close.” Shiro didn’t know if that meant she knew about them or not. 

“Yeah, we’ve known each other since high school.” Keith crunched loudly on his peanuts. 

“So, how long have you been living here,” Shiro asked. Shiro wondered if she had been here ever since leaving her family. 

“Not long.” Keith made a slurping noise. Shiro looked over to see him eating fruit in a cup with only his tongue. 

“Would you mind telling me what Keith’s superhuman heritage is?”. Krolia looked down. 

“Human-animal hybrid. Racoon.” Shiro choked on his own spit and started coughing. Keith was a raccoon. It all made sense now. 

“Are you choking?” Krolia asked. Shiro attempted to stop coughing. He still let out small coughs but he was getting better.

“I’m alright,” Shiro choked out. He was dating a raccoon boy. What did that say about him? No, no, that was rude. There was nothing wrong with having animal DNA. Keith couldn’t control his heritage and Shiro wouldn’t judge him for it. Shiro noted that Krolia stopped looking him in the eye when she said that. Perhaps she had been shamed for her heritage before. Now Shiro felt bad. Kosmo shuffled over Keith’s lap and onto Shiro’s. He looked up at him and sniffed his face in concern. Shiro patted his head. 

“That explains why Keith is so great at tracking, and climbing trees. He has some very useful skills,” Shiro said. Krolia’s eyes snapped back on him. 

“When have you seen him use tracking skills?”. Shiro thought of their missions hunting villains and Keith tracking Pidge when they were training her. 

Keith saved him the trouble. “We went camping. I tracked a rabbit.” That wasn’t actually a lie, although they let the rabbit escape. Back when they were in high school they went on a camping trip with Keith's dad. Keith spotted a rabbit and insisted on chasing it. Shiro hoped the rabbit forgot the incident and lived a long and happy life. Krolia nodded, although she still stared into Shiro's eyes. Shiro turned to look at Keith, who was now starting on a bag of chips. Shiro wondered why Krolia thought it was a good idea to supply Keith with a mountain of food. Maybe she thought this made up for leaving him. Shiro hoped Keith wasn’t upset about Shiro's reaction to his heritage. Shiro loved Keith, raccoon or not. Shiro shifted in his seat as Krolia continued to stare at him. 

“You’re the Atlas,” Krolia stated. 

“How...how did you know that?” Shiro asked. 

“A friend of mine.” Shiro turned to look at Keith. Keith looked back at him. Shiro heard a growl from his lap. He saw the dog was chewing on his prosthetic. 

Krolia stood up and walked over. She pointed her finger at the dog. “No, Kosmo! Bad dog! We don’t chew people’s arms!”, Krolia scolded him. Kosmo’s ears went back. 

“No. Bad dog,” Krolia repeated. Kosmo looked at her with puppy dog eyes and whined. Krolia picked him up and put him on the ground. Shiro was impressed with her strength. Kosmo was a large dog. Shiro missed the warm and fluffy weight on his lap. He was happy to see his arm wasn’t dented. Shiro needed to have a talk with Keith. He couldn’t go around revealing Shiro’s identity whenever he felt like it. 

Krolia looked at Shiro; her hard gaze softened. “Thank you for being such a good friend to Keith. I’m glad he had someone after his father passed away,” Krolia said. 

Shiro crossed his arms. “Yeah, I’m glad he had me too. It was hard on him losing both parents.” Shiro wasn’t planning on being passive-aggressive today but that’s how it was going. He might need to take some deep breaths. He just couldn’t stand anyone hurting Keith. Krolia moved backward as if Shiro physically hurt her. 

“I would have been there if I could have,” Krolia said in a hard voice. Keith looked up from his food. 

“Leave her alone,” Keith told him. Shiro looked down at his shoes. 

“I would never have left Keith of my own volition. He means the world to me,” Krolia said. Shiro saw Keith duck his head down to hide his smile. Shiro was dying to ask her why she left but he held his tongue. 

“I hear you and Keith have gone on missions together. You’ll look out for him, won’t you?” Krolia said. Shiro nodded. He would always look out for Keith. Keith probably thought he could look after himself, but he was too busy eating to join in the conversation. Krolia should have supplied healthy snacks instead. 

“What’s going on in here,” a gruff voice asked. Shiro turned to look. He saw tall muscular gentlemen who looked to be in his late forties. His white hair was in a side braid which only increased his attractiveness. He was slightly tan, like Krolia. Shiro was not usually into older men but this guy was really something. Shiro remembered he had a boyfriend and felt like smacking himself. He needed to dial down the horny thoughts. The man looked Shiro directly in the eyes with a knowing look. Shiro gulped. The man sat on the other side of Keith and brought him into a hug. 

“How’s my favorite grandson,” the man said. 

Oh shit. He was thinking horny thoughts about Keith’s grampy. Keith leaned into the man so close he was practically on his lap. 

“You better not say that in front of Regris,” Keith said. The man chuckled. 

“He knows what he did.” He looked at Shiro. 

“Who might you be?” Keith’s grandfather asked. 

Shiro’s formal etiquette training kicked in. “I’m Shiro, nice to meet you, sir. What is your name?”. 

“I am Kolivan, Krolia’s father. Nice to meet you.” Kolivan ruffled Keith’s hair. Keith shrieked and bared his teeth at him. Kolivan gently took out the hair tie, finger-combed Keith’s hair, and then put it back on. Keith still looked grumpy but he didn’t say anything. Kosmo jumped up next to Kolivan and rolled over. He rubbed Kosmo belly. 

“He doesn’t deserve that, he was a bad boy,” Krolia said. 

“How so?” Kolivan asked without ceasing the belly rub. 

“He chewed Shiro’s arm,” Krolia said. Kolivan glanced between Shiro’s arms. 

“Is your arm damaged?” Kolivan said.

Shiro shook his head. “It’s fine.” Kolivan stood and walked over to Shiro. He lifted Shiro’s arms and inspected them himself. He put them down wordlessly and resumed his former position. A loud sound broke the silence. Shiro started. Kolivan pulled his phone out. “I have to take this,” he said, before walking out of the room. Kosmo followed him. His large paws tapped on the hardwood.

“I'm making ravioli, salmon, steak, and green beans for lunch. Oh, do you have any dietary restrictions?” Krolia asked. 

Shiro shook his head. “Anything would be great, Ma’am, and I don’t have any dietary restrictions.” 

Krolia nodded. “I will make enough for everyone.” Shiro was going to protest that she didn’t need to go to all that trouble but she was already leaving the room. Keith stood and stretched his arms above his head which caused his shirt to ride up. Shiro admired his stomach. Cute. They followed Krolia into the kitchen. The walls were painted a cheery yellow which was a nice contrast against the dark wood. The kitchen island included a second sink and some barstools. Shiro didn’t know much about interior design but he thought it was a nice kitchen. Krolia put a large fillet of salmon in the oven. Shiro noticed that they had two fridges side by side. Keith sat down on a barstool and followed suit. The only noise was Krolia opening cabinets and moving things around the kitchen. 

“It’s neat that Kolivan has the same hairstyle as you,” Shiro said to Keith. 

“Long hair is significant in our culture,” Krolia said. She placed a pot on the stove. Shiro thought back to when he was staying over at Keith’s house. It was lunchtime, and Heith was talking about his grandparents moving to the States from Korea. Shiro didn’t remember hearing about Krolia’s heritage. Shiro didn’t know much about Korean culture, so it could be a Korean thing. 

“Um...what culture might that be?” Shiro asked. 

Krolia turned around to face Keith. “You never told him?” she asked. 

Keith shrugged. “It never came up.”

Krolia turned to Shiro. “Keith’s father was Korean, as I’m sure you know. I am half Japanese, half Mi’kmaq. There’s also a little French somewhere way back.”

“Mig...mee?” Shiro said. Krolia chuckled. 

“It’s pronounced meeg-mac when used in the plural and meeg-mah(Mi’kmaw) in the singular.” 

Shiro nodded. “So, if I were talking about all Mi’kmaq, I would pronounce it meeg-mac, and if I am just talking about you, I would say meeg-mah?”

“Exactly.” Krolia walked to a cabinet and got out another pot. 

“So, what is...where do Mi’kmaq people come from?”. 

“Nova Scotia, mostly, although I was born here in California.” 

Shiro nodded as if that cleared things up. He pulled his phone out and googled Nova Scotia. Oh, Canada. That explained why he had never heard of it. He didn’t learn anything about Canada in school. So they were Native American. Native Canadian? He wished Keith had told him about his heritage. He would have loved to learn more about Keith. 

“Uh, I hope this isn’t offensive, but would you prefer to be called Native Canadian?”. 

“I would prefer Mi’kmaq if you were talking about my tribe. If you were talking about multiple tribes, I would say indigenous or native people. Not all tribes agree with that terminology, though.”

Shiro nodded, although Krolia wasn’t looking at him. Shiro knew barely anything about Native people. He knew what he had seen on TV and learned in history class. He had no clue how native people actually lived in modern times. After that thought, he felt ashamed of himself. He never bothered to learn. 

“So, you said your hair is significant?”. 

Krolia filled the pots with water and put in ravioli in one and green beans in another.  
“Yes. It is hard to articulate how important hair is to us. It is an extension of ourselves. We only cut it when a family member has died. It connects us to nature.”

Shiro noted Krolia’s short hairstyle. Krolia continued preparing lunch. Shiro looked at Keith’s long braid with new appreciation. He remembered that Keith cut it short after his father died, but Shiro assumed he just needed a change. Shiro liked the thing about long hair being connected with nature. He would never have long hair himself because he didn’t want to bother caring for it, but he thought it was beautiful symbolism. Shiro wondered how Keith had learned about his own culture since Krolia wasn’t there for him growing up. 

“Where did the raccoon come from?” Shiro asked. 

A loud clang sounded as Krolia dropped the ladle. “The ravioli is almost done.” Shiro turned to look at Keith. Perhaps Krolia hadn’t heard him. Keith rested his hand on the counter. Keith glanced between Shiro’s face and the counter. Shiro took the hint and held Keith’s hand. Krolia set plates of ravioli and green beans in front of them. She sat down beside Keith with her own plate. Shiro was surprised to discover that Krolia had excellent table manners. While Keith shoved as much food in his mouth as fast as possible while his napkin lay abandoned, Krolia ate at a normal pace with her napkin on her lap. While Krolia sipped her water throughout the meal, Keith first ate all his food and then loudly gulped all his water after eating. At least he was using a fork. Krolia took the steak and salmon out of the oven and set them on the counter. 

Shiro started when he noticed another person was in the room. He saw a teenage girl with purple hair in the same style as Krolia’s walk toward the stove. Her skin was lighter than Krolia’s but not as pale as Keith’s. She reached for the salmon but Krolia smacked her hand away.

“It’s hot, and you need to use utensils anyway.” The girl used a spatula to serve herself a generous helping of salmon. She started walking towards the doorway to the foyer. 

“And where do you think you’re going? Come sit with us,” Krolia said. The girl groaned and put the plate on the breakfast bar beside Keith, where Krolia was previously sitting. Up close, Shiro noticed that the girl had the same purple pupils and yellow scleras as Krolia’s. 

“This is my daughter Axca. That’s pronounced Ak-sha.” Axca started eating her salmon. Krolia gave her a look. Axca sighed. 

Krolia had another kid, then. So she really did leave Heith to start another family. He wondered how Keith could possibly look at her with so much love. 

“I’m Axca, nice to meet you.” Axca shoveled more salmon into her mouth. 

“I’m Shiro, Keith’s friend. Nice to meet you.”

“Yeah, I know who you are. Keith talks about you a lot.” Keith gave Axca a dirty look. Axca stuck her tongue out at him. 

Oh. Keith talked about him. Shiro felt a swooping sensation in his stomach. When they were finished eating the ravioli and green beans, Krolia set down platters with steak and salmon. Shiro politely refused any more food but Keith and Krolia ate voraciously. Axca took a helping of steak. When everyone was finished eating Krolia put the dishes in the sink. Axca exchanged a nod with Keith before she went back through the doorway to the foyer. They all headed in the same direction as her. Shiro saw Axca walking up the stairs. 

“It was nice meeting you, Krolia,” Shiro said.

“You too. Come visit again soon.” Keith surprised Shiro when he surged forward and hugged his mother tight. 

“I’ll come back soon. Maybe tomorrow.” Krolia set her hand on top of his head. 

“I’ll see you soon, Keith. I love you.” Shiro heard Keith quietly say it back. Keith stepped away from Krolia and then they headed home.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> some PLOT and some LANCE CONTENT, since we've been sorely lacking in that department. I know it's taking a while for Lance to join their relationship, but these things take time, people :)

Shiro texted Pidge to ask what she was doing as soon as he woke up. He promised Matt he would check in on her. Pidge texted a picture of her without her glasses and with all her hair fluffed up. She squinted at the screen. It appeared that she had also just woken up. Shiro stretched and dragged himself out of bed. He drank a cup of coffee before bringing one to Keith’s room. He went in without knocking because Keith was never up this early. As he thought, Keith was bundled up in his comforter. Shiro set the mug on the bedside table and then gently placed his hand on the bit of Keith's head that was peeking out. 

“Time to wake up, sunshine,” Shiro said. Keith groaned. He snuggled deeper into the comforter. Shiro pet his head. Keith leaned into his touch and wiggled out of his blanket cocoon. He cracked his eyes open and yawned. He blinked at Shiro. Shiro leaned forward and gave him a kiss on the forehead. He couldn’t help it, Keith was too cute. Shiro saw Keith’s soft expression before Keith started chugging the coffee. Shiro waited until he finished the cup before he offered Keith his hand. Keith looked at it in confusion. Shiro picked up Keith's hand and threaded their fingers together. Shiro sat next to him. 

“Good morning,” Shiro said. Keith grunted. 

“So, you have a sister,” Shiro prompted. He didn’t want to bother Keith yesterday with his questions after the exciting day he had. 

“Uh-huh. She’s cool. I actually like her,” Keith said. 

Shiro was hoping for more than that. He was glad Keith got along with her, though. He didn’t like most people. 

“How old is she?”. She had to be only a few years younger than Keith if they shared a father. 

“I think she’s fourteen. She’s a freshman in high school, but she’s homeschooled.” 

Fourteen, huh. Different father, then. Not that Shiro expected anything different. 

“Uh, do you know if Krolia...remarried?”. 

“No, she didn’t.” 

They sat in silence for a few moments, and then Keith decided it was time for breakfast. Shiro poured them both a bowl of cereal. Keith started eating it before he could add milk, so Shiro just started eating his own. 

“I didn’t tell my mom that you’re the Atlas,” Keith said. Shiro looked up from his bowl. 

“How did she know, then?”. 

“She’s in a...group that is fighting against the Galra. They found out somehow.” Shiro dropped his spoon. 

“Why didn’t you tell me?”.

Keith shrugged. “I wanted you to meet her first.”

“Tell me about this group she’s in.”

“I don’t know much about them. It's called the Blades of Marmora. It’s mostly just family members, with a few exceptions. I’ve met three uncles and a cousin. And this one annoying guy.”

Wow, three uncles. That was a lot. 

“Mom said you could meet them if you want. Grandpa wasn’t super happy about me telling you about the group, but mom went off on him about how you were like family to me.”

Shiro smiled at the thought of Krolia saying that. He frowned when he realized that might mean she thought they were like brothers. 

“Does she know we’re, like...going on dates?”. 

“I didn’t tell her yet. She doesn’t know I like guys yet, either, but she'll be fine with it.”

Shiro hoped that was true. Keith texted his mom. She said they could go over today to meet everyone. They took the car this time. Keith rang the doorbell. A middle-aged man answered. The man had short dark brown hair and eyes. Shiro noticed his thick bushy eyebrows and high cheekbones. Other than the eyebrows, his face was rather feminine. 

The man held out his hand.

“I’m Ulaz, Keith’s uncle. I’ve heard great things.”

Shiro shook his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, sir.”

Ulaz waved him away. “Ulaz is fine.” He ushered them inside. 

“Everyone else is upstairs, but can I offer you something to drink or eat first?”.

Shiro was going to refuse, but Keith requested food so they went to the kitchen. Shiro reeled back in shock when he noticed someone casually lying on their stomach on top of the counter, inching their hand toward a cup near the edge.

“Lance? What are you doing here?” Shiro asked.

Lance snatched his hand away from the cup. He looked up. “Shiro! I live here. What are you doing here?”.  
Lance lived here?

Ulaz looked at Shiro. “You know Lance?”. Ulaz glared at Lance. Shiro didn’t know what that was about. 

“Yes, we met at the park one day, and I invited him to jog with me. Then we ran into each other at the cafe Lance works at,” Shiro explained.

Ulaz nodded and his gaze softened. A second later he frowned. “Don’t think I didn’t see what you were about to do to that cup,” Ulaz said. 

Lance fluttered his eyelashes. “Who, me? I would never.” 

Ulaz smiled and shook his head. “You best be glad Kolivan’s not here. He’s mad enough without you pushing cups off the counter again.” 

Shiro snorted. He put a hand over his mouth but it was too late. Lance shrunk into himself. His face was bright red. Shiro couldn’t believe Lance actually liked to push things off counters. That was adorable. 

“Stop exposing me like this,” Lance whined. Ulaz chuckled. Keith walked past them and opened one of the fridges. Shiro could hear munching sounds but couldn't see beyond the fridge door. 

Shiro was confused. Lance lived here. Did the blades of Marmora know that Lance was the Blue Lion? Is that how they knew Shiro’s identity? Keith took bags of carrots from the fridge and then they all went upstairs. Lance looked back longingly at the cup. They went through the first door to the left. Kosmo ran at them at full speed and stood up with his paws on Shiro’s stomach. Shiro was grateful for his strength. Kosmo was a big boy and easily capable of bowling a person over. Shiro pet his head until he calmed down. The room was filled with people. Kolivan and Krolia sat side by side on a couch, and a man with a scruffy square-jawed face and a muscular body sat on the opposing couch. His long black hair was loose down his back. He looked similar to Kolivan. Ulaz sat beside him and motioned for Shiro and Keith to join him. 

“This is my husband, Thace,” Ulaz said. 

“Congratulations,” Shiro said. Ulaz nodded his thanks. Shiro kept his expression neutral. So the family was accepting. He wished Keith had told him that detail. Lance sat on the armrest right next to Shiro. Shiro tucked his prosthetic close to his body. If he moved it at all he would brush Lance’s thigh. Kosmo jumped up on Shiro’s lap. Shiro pet his head. 

“Regris, get over here and meet Shiro,” Ulaz said. 

Someone groaned. Shiro saw a teenage boy open the door of what Shiro thought was a closet. His shiny black hair was braided down his back. He looked a lot like Keith, although he was shorter and looked to be in his younger teens. His eyes were brown, unlike Keith’s violet. 

“But Dad, I’m busy,” the boy complained. Ulaz gave him a look. The boy rolled into the room in a rolly chair. So this was the fabled Regris, the least favorite grandchild. Regris pulled out his phone.

“Put that away,” Thace said. Regris groaned again and put his phone away. 

“Now introduce yourself,” Ulaz said. 

Regris wheeled his seat around. “Hi. I’m Regris. Can I go now?”. Thace grabbed the back of his rolly chair and dragged Regris towards him. 

“Not if you're going to be disrespectful like that. Apologize to Shiro, now, or I’ll change the wifi password,” Thace said.

Regris smirked. “I’ll find a way.” Thace lightly cuffed Regris’ head. 

“Sorry,” Regris said to Shiro, before rolling himself back in the other room.

“Lance tried to knock a cup off the counter again,” Keith said to Kolivan. 

Lance swung himself around to look at Keith. His legs ended up in Shiro’s lap, right next to Kosmo. 

“No, I didn’t! I thought about it, yeah, but I didn’t do it,” Lance said. 

Kolivan gave Lance an unimpressed look. “If you keep doing that, I’m going to have to replace all the cups with plastic ones,” Kolivan said.

“You’ve been saying that for years but you never do it,” Ulaz pointed out. Thace nodded.

“So, back to the topic at hand. Shiro, what questions do you have for us?” Kolivan asked. 

Shiro thought about it. 

“When did you start fighting the galra? And why?”. 

Krolia looked down at her lap. Kolivan’s gaze stayed steady.

“They took my mother from me. My father fought to get her back, and he did. She passed away a few years later due to complications from the Galra’s experimentation on her. That was how it started,” Kolivan explained. 

“Do you know why they’re experimenting on people?”. Krolia stiffened beside Kolivan. 

“We have a good idea of what they’re doing. After the failed experiment on my mother, they eventually successfully planted human-animal hybrid DNA in a human and turned them superhuman,” Kolivan said. 

Shiro slowly processed that information. A human was turned superhuman with human-animal DNA. Shiro had a funny thought. Krolia and Axca had purple eyes and yellow scleras, but Kolivan did not. Krolia’s brother Thace didn’t have the eyes either.

Shiro needed to know. 

“Who was the person?” Shiro asked. Lance started tapping his foot, which was still on Shiro’s lap. At least he was wearing socks.

“Me,” Krolia said.

Krolia disappeared shortly after Keith was born. That part didn’t fit. Keith would only have that DNA if she disappeared before he was born. Keith did have violet eyes, even if he lacked the yellow scleras.

“Did that happen before Keith was born?”. He felt like he was asking a dumb question but he was confused. 

Krolia nudged Kolivan with her elbow. Kolivan gave her a soft look. 

“Krolia was taken when she was young. That was when she was turned superhuman. We managed to break her out. The galra found her again after Keith was born. We only recently got her back.”

Oh no. That meant Krolia must have been with the Galra...for over a decade. Shiro was only there for a little while compared to her. 

“And, uh, where did Axca come from?”. Okay, that was definitely a stupid question. He hoped Kolivan wouldn’t say ‘she popped out of my daughter’.

“The Galra artificially inseminated her.”

Oh no. It kept getting worse. They forced Krolia to have a child when she was a captive. That meant...that meant Axca had grown up with the Galra. She grew up with the Galra experimenting on her, hurting her. Shiro started petting Kosmo faster. He felt like a jerk. He was so rude to Krolia last time. They all sat in silence for a few moments.

“So, everyone here is related somehow, except Ulaz, who is married to Thace. Is that right?” Shiro asked. 

“Everyone except me. I’m special,” Lance said. Shiro looked between Kolivan and Lance. 

“We rescued Lance when he was younger. We were trying to find Krolia, but we had bad information. We found Lance instead and brought him home,” Ulaz said.

Shiro really wished he had been wrong about the Galra taking Lance. He was glad Lance got rescued, though. All the questions Shiro could think of had been answered, but he knew he would think of one as soon as he left. Ain’t that just the way. 

Shiro went with Krolia, Keith, and Lance downstairs so the others could finish their meeting. Kosmo followed them. They went straight to the kitchen. Keith went for the peanut butter jar but Krolia slapped his hand away and got out a bowl of salad. Lance hopped onto the counter. 

“So, you live here,” Shiro said to Lance. 

“Yeah. You’re welcome to visit me anytime.”

Shiro nodded. He wondered how Lance being the Blue Lion fit into all this. He didn’t want to mention it in case they didn’t know.

“As if he’d want to visit you,” Keith said. 

“Hey! He does want to visit me, we’re friends!” Lance said. 

“Uh-huh, sure,” Keith said sarcastically. 

Shiro gave Keith a look. Keith started eating his salad again. With his hands, of course. 

“Why do you knock stuff off counters?” Keith asked. 

“You’ve been coming over for weeks now. Do you still not know my superhuman heritage?”.

Keith shook his head. Lance smirked. He meowed in a perfect imitation of a cat. Keith put his hand over his mouth in shock. 

“You’re a kitty?” Keith mumbled under his breath. He had sparkles in his eyes. He shuffled closer. Lance showed Keith his claws and then sheathed them. Keith picked up one of Lance’s hands. He gently squeezed near the end of his finger, which caused his claw to come out. Lance looked smug. After a few minutes of this, shiro hip bumped Keith. Keith realized what he was doing and dropped Lance’s hand. 

“We’ll come back soon,” Keith promised. They left after Keith was done with his food. Shiro brought out his space blanket to the sofa and they cuddled together while watching a nature documentary. Keith thought it was garbage because there were no hippos involved. Shiro kissed the top of Keith’s head. Keith looked up immediately. Shiro was worried he had done something wrong, but then Keith surged upwards and kissed him. Shiro gently pet Keith’s hair as they kissed. When Shiro pulled away Keith’s lips looked wet and puffy. That made Shiro want to kiss him again. When the documentary was over Shiro realized he hadn’t paid attention to it at all. Shiro propped a pillow up and lied down. Keith rested on top of him with his head on Shiro’s chest. Shiro eventually drifted off to sleep. 

Shiro’s phone woke him with a ding. Pidge texted him that she decided she wanted to meet Lance. Shiro went to stretch but then remembered he had Keith on top of him. He couldn’t move, that would disturb him. Keith looked so peaceful when he was sleeping. His face was relaxed and the rise and fall of his chest was slow. Keith nuzzled into Shiro’s chest. Pidge sent him another text. Keith shifted. Shiro turned the volume of his phone off and looked at the text. Pidge wanted to tell Hunk about Lance. Shiro asked her if she could wait a while. He already had enough excitement for the week. Shiro put his phone away and just listened to Keith’s breathing. It instantly calmed him. He couldn’t go back to sleep, but he didn’t mind staying still and letting Keith rest. 

Later, Shiro asked Lance if the blades knew that Lance was the Blue Lion. Lance told him everyone knew except Keith and asked him not to tell him. Shiro wondered why Lance wouldn’t want Keith to know. Maybe it was because they didn’t get along. Shiro told Lance that Pidge wanted to meet him and also wanted to tell her friend about him. Lance was excited. Lance wanted to know if he could meet Pidge’s brother also, but Shiro said no. Matt wasn’t part of their superhero team, so they needed to keep top secret information away from him. Maybe someday they could meet. 

Keith sat down next to Shiro, so Shiro put his phone away. 

“So. You don’t seem to get along with Lance,” Shiro said. 

Keith huffed. “He’s annoying.” 

Shiro wondered why Keith didn’t like Lance. Shiro found him endearing. 

“He got to grow up with my family,” Keith said quietly. 

Oh. Keith was jealous. 

“You know, he probably lost his own family,” Shiro said.

“I know that! I’m not saying they shouldn’t have let him live with them, I’m just saying...I wished I could have.”

Shiro opened his arms. Keith sat on his lap and hugged him. Shiro rubbed his back and let Keith nuzzle into his neck. He felt a sharp nip.

“Ow! Keith, why did you do that?”. 

Keith pulled back. He looked confused and a little sad. “I thought couples bite each other’s necks?”.

Shiro opened and closed his mouth. “I mean, sometimes, but not like that.”

“Oh.”

“I’ll show you how to do it properly sometime,” Shiro offered.

Keith gave him a small smile and snuggled up to Shiro’s side.

“I’d like that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Chapter: more Lance content and Pidge content coming soon in theaters


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pidge and Lance meet. Plot! Then Shiro goes on a date with Keith.

The next day, Shiro hatched a plan. He needed a way for Pidge to meet Lance without Hunk, Matt, or Keith finding out. Easier said than done. He thought through all the places he used to go when he was younger with his family. He decided on the Monterey Bay aquarium. He made a group chat with Pidge and Lance and asked if they wanted to go to the aquarium to meet. Lance was incredibly excited. Shiro remembered Lance had a love for fish. They could eat at a nearby seafood restaurant. They also served mac n cheese, so Pidge would be happy. Keith had work today, which was perfect for Shiro’s scheme. Shiro picked Pidge up from Hunk’s apartment. Hunk was aware they were going to the aquarium, but he didn’t know they were meeting Lance there. 

“So what is Lance like?” Pidge asked. Her feet were up on the dashboard. She had specifically moved the chair forward so she could do that with her short legs. 

“He’s a little hyper, in touch with his emotions, and kind-hearted,” Shiro said. 

“You sound like you’re into him.” 

Shiro could admit to himself that he had a tiny crush on Lance, but he was planning on squashing it as much as possible. He would never cheat on Keith. He just needed to ignore the feeling until it disappeared. 

“He’s just a good friend.”

They wasted fifteen minutes looking for a parking space. Pidge texted Lance from Shiro’s phone that they would be late. He said he would take the time to explore the gift shop. They walked to the aquarium. Pidge complained that she was cold. Shiro knew for a fact that Hunk told Pidge to wear a jacket. Did she listen? No. Shiro opened his jacket and allowed Pidge to huddle inside next to him like a baby penguin. When they got to the front doors Pidge stepped out from his jacket. Shiro paid the entry fee and they went into the gift shop. They found Lance looking at children’s books. 

“I’m thinking about getting one of these for Regris. He’ll get mad, it’ll be really funny,” Lance said. 

“Who’s Regris?” Pidge asked. 

“A guy I live with. He’s thirteen and insists that he isn’t a little kid anymore, but he acts like a brat all the time.”

Lance wore a simple blue t-shirt and jeans. Shiro was irritated that he could look that good in such a simple outfit. He knew his irritation was based on his attraction to Lance, but he squashed that thought and threw it in his mind’s garbage can. 

“How are you getting your information,” Pidge said. 

She was getting straight to the point, then. A few people entered the gift shop, so Shiro beckoned Lance and Pidge to follow him. Shiro was always amazed by the whale skeleton that hung from the ceiling. Its enormous size made him feel small. Shiro led them to his favorite exhibit: the kelp forest. Kelp drifted back and forth slowly as fish darted in between. Pidge was momentarily distracted from her interrogation as a leopard shark swam by. 

“I’m part of a certain group that has intel on the Galra. I can’t tell you anymore, but Shiro is aware of all the details,” Lance said. 

They went to the open sea exhibit. Shiro watched a group of sardines dart to a fro in a group. He wondered how they could all synchronize with each other. Lance watched a large, slow-moving tuna fish. He licked his lips. 

“Why are you against the Galra when you are yourself a criminal?”. 

Shiro thought Pidge may have created a list of questions and memorized them.

“I have a personal vendetta against the Galra. Many of the crimes I do are to stop the Galra from hurting people. Do you remember I stole some stuff from a dude named Mr. Velveeto? He was making major money off of selling drugs.”

Pidge didn’t appear shocked, but Shiro knew her well enough to know she was making an effort to not give Lance any information about what she knew. They walked to the ocean view deck. Shiro put quarters into the binoculars and looked through to observe sea lions lying on a rock. 

“You helped Shiro when he got hurt, despite him trying to lock you up. Why?”.

Lance shrugged. 

“I started panicking. I thought he might have serious internal injuries. I might be a criminal, but I do it to help people. Seeing someone hurt because of me...I couldn’t deal with it. I contacted a member of my group. They realized I was panicking and decided to help, despite our leader telling him not to. We got in a lot of trouble for risking getting caught,” Lance explained. Lance took his turn looking through the binoculars. 

“What is your superhuman heritage?”. 

Lance meowed. Pidge smirked and looked at Shiro. Shiro wished that didn’t make him feel warm inside. It was just his fondness for cats, Shiro told himself. Nothing else was going on here. They saw the other exhibits they wanted to see, and then Shiro brought them to his favorite seafood restaurant. Pidge ordered mac n cheese and chicken tenders. The waitress assumed she was a young child and gave her free jello. Lance ordered salmon. Shiro got some calamari and french fries. He squeezed lemon on it and used the dipping sauce. Delicious. Everyone enjoyed their meal. They walked along a few streets and wandered into stores. Shiro let Pidge borrow his coat. He tied the bottom of it around her waist so it didn’t trail on the ground. Lance held up a seashell bra to his chest and winked at Shiro. Shiro was glad Pidge was busy playing with bobbleheads. In the next store, Shiro held a swimsuit top up to his chest and looked at Lance suggestively. An elderly lady glared at him.

“You would look good in that,” Lance said. He looked sincere. Shiro admired Lance’s smile. Lance smiled a lot more than Keith did, but the warm feeling Shiro got each time was the same. Shiro set the top back down. Pidge walked over holding a jellyfish wind chime. 

“Buy me this,” Pidge said. Shiro looked at her expectantly.

“Please.”

Shiro bought her the windchime. Pidge walked beside them with the windchime clanking. 

Shiro visited Lance and Keith’s family a few times over the next couple of weeks. Keith was still acting grumpy around Lance. The blades said they wanted to have a meeting “without the children” so Lance, Shiro, and Keith were babysitting Regris and Axca. Shiro was aware that they did not need that many babysitters, especially for teenagers. He suspected they were counting Lance and Keith as children. Shiro was a buffer between them. Axca and Regris weren’t hard to look after. Axca lied down on one of the couches in the living room and watched youtube while Lance and Regris scrolled through TikTok. Shiro and Keith looked at each other. They had nothing to do.

“I like your shirt,” Shiro said. Keith was wearing a muscle shirt. It showed off more of Keith’s skin than Shiro was used to seeing. Keith looked down at his shirt.

“Thanks.” The background was filled with the noise of Lance and Regris singing along to a song. 

“Hit or miss, I guess they never miss, huh-”

“Lance, If you sing that song one more time I will buy a cat carrier and put you in it,” a man’s voice said,” and Regris, I will take away all of your electronics.”. Shiro turned around and saw Thace, Krolia’s brother. That was the most Shiro had heard him say. His voice was deep and sexy. No, shut up, Shiro. Lance stuck out his tongue. Shiro was struck with the resemblance between that and when his cat Snail did a lil blep. Shiro smiled fondly at him. He got a sharp elbow in his side. 

“Why are you looking at him like that,” Keith whispered in his ear. Shiro didn’t have an answer to that. Lance looked at them curiously. 

“He’s a good friend, now,” Shiro whispered back. Keith didn’t look convinced. Shiro felt guilt squirming in his stomach. 

“He does look kind of cute today,” Keith whispered. Lance did indeed look cute. He wore a blue shirt that exposed his shoulders and denim shorts. It was a simple outfit, but he was breathtaking. He always was. Shiro glanced back at Lance and saw he was still looking at them. He was covering his mouth and his cheeks were dusted pink. Oh. Lance had good hearing. Shiro laughed nervously. 

“Why are you even here? You’re supposed to be at your stupid Blade meeting,” Regris said.

“Don’t speak about the Blades that way. Lance, Keith, come with me.” Lance complained that he hadn’t done anything wrong but followed Thace up the stairs. Regris ignored everything happening around him and continued to scroll through TikTok. Shiro found all the noise from TikTok to be too much for him but he ignored it. It was his duty to watch these teens and he would accomplish it. He wished Regris would wear earbuds like Axca. Shiro wondered why the Blades were being so secretive about this meeting. He didn’t care that much, though. He was looking forward to tonight. Keith had the night off and they planned to cuddle on the couch and watch whatever movies they wanted to. 

Shiro dutifully watched Axca and Regris. It wasn’t hard, considering they just stayed still and looked at their devices. A few minutes later Keith came downstairs to fetch Shiro. Shiro hadn’t expected to be invited to the meeting. Keith whispered to Axca that she was in charge of keeping Regris downstairs. 

Shiro followed Keith upstairs. Instead of going into the room they went in last time, Keith led him down the hallway and opened the door at the end. It was a bedroom. Kolivan and Krolia sat on a chaise lounge by the wide window. Lance was lying across their laps. His face was buried in Krolia’s stomach. Thace and Ulaz sat on the piano bench. What kind of rich people owned two pianos? Sitting on the bed was a young man Shiro had never seen before. He looked to be in his late teens. He had a buzz cut. Shiro could see that the hair that was there was white. He had a rather feminine face. His eyes were just like Krolia’s with yellow scleras and purple Irises. He stared blankly at the wall. Shiro sat down on a cushy armchair next to the chaise lounge. Keith sat in his lap. Shiro wrapped his arms around Keith’s waist. The weight and warmth of Keith were grounding. 

“We got some intel from an undercover blade member about a top-secret Galra human experiment. We rescued him and brought him here. We had hoped he would be able to tell us about his family so we can protect him, but he answered a few questions and made it clear that is not necessary,” Kolivan said. 

“He was raised in the facility, just like Axca. His case is different because he does not know his mother. He also does not have a proper name,” Kolivan continued. 

The word ‘proper’ stuck out to Shiro. 

“What’s your name?” Shiro asked the boy. 

“I am Procyon lotor,” the boy recited as if this were a question at school. Instead of looking at Shiro, he continued staring at the wall. 

“It’s the scientific name for a raccoon,” Krolia said. 

Shiro didn’t know how to process this. This poor kid grew up as a science experiment, like Axca, and didn’t have anyone to bond with at all. He didn’t even have a name. 

“Everyone in this family needed to know about this because he will be living with us from now on. Ulaz, Thace, and I will tell the kids later,” Krolia said. She rested her hand on top of Lance’s head. Shiro hoped he was okay. 

“Do you have a therapist for, uh, Lotor?” Shiro asked. 

“I’m not a therapist, but I majored in Psychology, so I will be counseling him,” Ulaz said. 

“We don’t want to involve a therapist. They would report illegal activity to the police, who wouldn’t be able to effectively combat the Galra like we can,” Kolivan explained. 

Lotor would need to learn how to do everyday things. The amount of information he knew about the outside world was as much as a baby. A traumatized baby. 

“He will be able to give us critical information about the galra, once he recovers,” Kolivan said. 

Shiro brought Keith home after that. They still cuddled on the couch and watched movies, but it wasn’t the fun date night they were looking forward to. 

“I hope Lotor will be okay,” Shiro said. Keith looked up at him. Keith was sitting in his lap again. Shiro knew this situation was serious but he couldn’t help but be aware of Keith’s thighs pressing against his legs. He wondered what his bare thighs looked like-

“I’m sure mom and everyone can look out for him.”

“Are you going to try to be friends with him?”. 

“No. I would probably scare him.” Shiro chuckled. Keith could come off as scary when he didn’t mean to. He had been calmer lately. Shiro attributed it to being near so many people who loved him and told him so. Shiro kissed the top of Keith’s head. 

“I love you, you strange raccoon boy,” Shiro said. Keith wrapped his arms around Shiro’s neck. 

“I love you, too, big strong man.” Keith pressed his lips against Shiro’s. Shiro threaded his fingers through Keith’s hair and pulled him closer. Keith bit his lip. Shiro moaned, then jerked back and covered his mouth. 

“Shiro?”. 

“Sorry, I uh, didn’t mean to-”. 

“I don’t care if you make noise. That means I know you like it.” Shiro nodded and uncovered his mouth. He pulled Keith close again. He rested his hands on Keith’s hips. It had always been Shiro’s dream to touch these hips. Shiro gave them a squeeze. Keith licked his neck. Shiro grimaced. Keith had found the least sexy way to do that possible. He started gently nibbling. Okay, slightly sexier. 

“You said you think Lance is cute,” Shiro said. Keith pulled away from his neck. 

“He is. It’s annoying.” Shiro held Keith’s face in his hand. 

“Kolivan said something about how Lance would be like a brother to me or some shit.”

Shiro chuckled. 

“Is that why you’re always picking fights with him? You’re mad that he’s cute?”. 

Keith lifted his head off of Shiro’s hand and buried his face in Shiro’s neck. 

“You’re not related, and you weren’t raised together. It’s okay to think of him like that,” Shiro said. 

“Even if that part’s okay, I’m dating you. I would never pick him over you.”

“Keith, it’s okay to be attracted to other people. That’s normal.” Shiro realized what a hypocrite he was being after he said that. He felt guilty all the time for thinking Lance was attractive. Shiro pet Keith’s head. He thought through what he was going to say. 

“Even if you had romantic feelings toward him, I wouldn’t be against that,” Shiro said. 

“What do you mean,” Keith mumbled into Shiro’s chest. 

“I think he’s cute too. I’m just saying I wouldn’t mind,” Shiro said. He really hoped Keith didn’t flip out. 

“Hmm. I’ll think about it. He is annoying, though.” Shiro picked Keith up and walked towards Keith’s door. They hadn’t explicitly talked about what Shiro wanted to talk about, but it was a good start. He didn’t want to push Keith into anything he didn’t want. 

“Can we stay in your room? We always fall asleep on the couch together anyway,” Keith said. 

Shiro turned and walked towards his own room. His bed was bigger. Shiro set Keith down on the bed and lied down beside him. He pulled the blankets over them both. Keith curled up against him. It felt right, like Keith was always meant to be there. Shiro kissed Keith’s forehead.

“Good night, sweetheart,” Shiro said. Keith avoided his eyes but gave him a small smile. 

The next day, Lance gave Shiro the evidence that Mr. Velveeto was involved with the Galra. Shiro dragged a screaming Mr. Velveeto into his car. He threatened Shiro with a lawsuit. Shiro handed him off with the evidence to the cops. 

Shiro had a scheme. It was genius. He asked Keith if he could treat him to lunch. Keith agreed, of course. He could never turn down free food. Shiro drove them to the Altea Tea cafe. The server put them by the window. Shiro looked around the cafe until he spotted him. He walked over to Lance and tapped him on the shoulder. 

“For the last time, I’m not taking your shift-”

“Lance.”

Lance looked over his shoulder. 

“Ooh! Hi, Shiro! I have work right now so I can’t talk.” Lance walked away and gave a table their drinks. Shiro looked at Keith and saw he was still looking out the window. Shiro slipped into the back of the cafe. The workers nodded at him. 

“Shiro, my boy!” Coran said. He squeezed Shiro into a hug. Coran’s hugs could break ribs. 

“I came to see if Lance could take a break and eat with me and Keith,” Shiro said. 

“Of course!”. Coran put his mouth next to Shiro's ear. His mustache tickled Shiro’s ear. “He’s my favorite. Don’t tell any of the other workers.” Coran sprung backward as if nothing had happened. He strutted out of the room and then to Lance. Lance was in the middle of taking a family’s order. 

“I’ll be taking it from here,” Coran said, grabbing the notebook out of Lance’s hands. Lance’s confused face was adorable. Coran pointed towards Shiro. Lance walked over to him. 

“Shiro? What’s going on?”. His confused voice was even cuter. 

“Coran is giving you a break to eat with me,” Shiro said. 

“Oh boy. This is the second time you’re getting me out of work, you know.” Lance followed Shiro to the table. Keith looked at them. 

“What are you doing here,” they said simultaneously. Shiro sat down and patted the seat next to him. Lance sat. 

“Lance works here,” Shiro explained. He gestured at Lance’s work outfit. Keith glared at Shiro. Lance sat down. A waiter came over and set water in front of Keith and Shiro. The waiter was an average looking guy with brown hair. 

“Can has?” Lance said. The waiter rolled his eyes. 

“Sure.” He left.

“This is my treat,” Shiro said to Lance. Lance looked at the menu. 

“I’ve never eaten here before.”

“I know you like the tuna sandwiches,” Shiro said. Lance laughed. 

“You got me there. This cat likes his fish.” The waiter came back with water for Lance. Lance blew him a kiss. The waiter rolled his eyes and walked away. Keith was looking at his lap. Shiro’s phone buzzed. 

Keith: why didn’t you tell me Lance would be here

Shiro: because you said you think he’s cute, but you’re too shy to actually talk to him and are covering it up with anger. 

Shiro tucked his phone back into his pocket. Keith glared at him. The waiter returned and took their order. Lance got some pink lemonade. The waiter came back a few minutes later and set a coloring page and crayons in front of Lance. 

“Ulaz says no one is ever too old for crayons,” Lance said. Lance focused on his coloring page. Keith snuck glances at Lance. Shiro yoinked a crayon and slid it to Keith. Keith drew on the paper covering the table cloth. It was supposed to protect from food stains, but it was being used for a greater purpose now. Shiro sat there not knowing what to do. He listened to the scratching of crayons. Keith was drawing some kind of monstrous bird. It had sharp teeth and its tongue was sticking out. 

“So, Lance, how have you been,” Shiro said. 

“Eh. The vibe in the house is off. Everyone’s acting all weird because of Lotor. We’re not allowed to be loud or play fight or do anything fun.” 

“You could play with a ball of yarn,” Keith suggested. 

“You could go eat some garbage,” Lance said. The waiter arrived and set their tray on the table. Shiro liked the tiered platter. It made it fancier. Lance loaded his plate with tuna sandwiches and dug in. He had yet to see the smoked salmon on the other side. Shiro placed some smoked salmon on Lance’s plate. Lance paused, looked at it, and then scarfed it down. Shiro ate some watercress sandwiches. They weren’t getting much talking done. 

“How is Lotor?” Shiro asked. Lance held up a finger for Shiro to wait and swallowed a big mouthful. 

“He’s mostly the same. He and Axca sit on the bed and watch youtube. Axca got a lot better when she started watching youtube, so we figured that might help him, too. Lotor hasn’t left his room yet except to go to the bathroom.”

Of course Axca was traumatized after she escaped, that made sense. He didn’t know why youtube of all things would help. 

“Youtube exposes them to the outside world, so they get a bunch of instant knowledge about how the world works. Plus, that was how Axca found out she could dye her hair.” 

Ah, that explained it. Hopefully, youtube would help Lotor learn about the world. 

“They’re not going to turn into snobby fashion people, right?” Shiro said. 

“Axca likes looking at music and video games, so I don’t think so,” Keith added. 

“Not all fashion people are snobby,” Lance said. 

“You say that as if you have an ounce of taste,” Keith said. Lance hissed. 

“Why are you always so mean?”. 

“Sorry.”

“I don’t need an apology, I need to know why.” Shiro munched on a sandwich. 

“I’m not good with people. I don’t know how to make friends,” Keith said. 

“You could start by not insulting me all the time.” Lance sipped on his pink lemonade. Pieces of strawberry swirled around the straw. Shiro watched Lance’s lips form around the straw and suck. Shiro shook his head. No, now was not the time for those thoughts. They ate quietly for a few minutes. 

“Ulaz mentioned Sendak’s name and Lotor freaked out. He looked scared,” Lance said.

“He always looks scared,” Keith said. 

“No, he normally stares blankly. He got on the floor and curled up.” 

Shiro ordered dessert for them all. Shiro and Keith shared a fudge sundae and Lance got a thick slice of cheesecake. Coran delivered it himself. 

“You gave me extra. You’re gonna fatten me up,” Lance said. 

“Jolly good, just in time for the winter,” Coran said. Shiro could never tell if he was joking or not. 

“That reminds me, I have a friend who lives in the arctic who is often visited by a seal,” Coran said,” I should call him soon.” Coran walked away. 

“Maybe we could hang out sometime,” Keith said. He stared resolutely at the table.

“That could be cool. You could buy me something as compensation for being so mean,” Lance said. Keith huffed. 

“Whatever. Shiro has to come, too.” Shiro decided this was a success. Lance and Keith were now on less bad terms. 

Coran let Lance leave after lunch. He said Lance “mustn’t overwork himself”. Lance pulled Shiro aside while Keith lurked beside the building. 

“I talked to Kolivan, and he said he would be willing to let you work with us to defeat the Galra,” Lance said. 

“Oh. Good,” Shiro said. The galra were the farthest thing from Shiro’s mind right now. Shiro went home with Keith. On the way back, Shiro’s phone rang. Keith answered it and put it on speaker. 

“Shiro! How have you been? You haven’t called in a while, “ Shiro’s mother, Kamiko, said. 

“Hi, mom. I missed you. Lots of stuff has been happening recently, I completely forgot. Sorry.”

“It’s alright my little sugar bun, no problem at all.” Keith was shaking with concealed laughter. Shiro’s face felt warm. There was no denying it, he was a mama’s boy. 

“I have some news for you. Snail is now a great auntie cat. Snail’s niece had kittens.”

Keith straightened up. 

“I wanna see them!” Keith said. 

“Oh, Keith? How are you, darling?”. Shiro gave Keith a smug look. She called him darling. Keith gave him the middle finger. 

“I wanna see the kittens,” Keith said. That one had a one-track mind. 

“Lucky for you, I know Snail’s sister’s family. You can definitely meet them, especially if you’re interested in adopting one.” Keith gave Shiro puppy dog eyes. Shiro looked at the road in front of him and focused on driving. 

“Shiro, can we get one? Please? I’ll take good care of it, I promise.” 

“I don’t know, Keith, our apartment is pretty small.” 

“I’ll ask mom if she can keep it at her house.” 

“You mean Kolivan’s house?”.

“Whatever.”

“Who’s mom?” Kamiko asked. 

“My mom. She was kidnapped and held captive and recently escaped,” Keith explained. Kamiko went silent. 

“She’s all right now,” Shiro assured her. 

When they got home, all Keith could talk about were the kittens. 

“I bet they’re so fuzzy. Maybe their eyes aren’t open yet. I wonder what colors they are? Maybe there’s one that looks like Snail.” 

Shiro had the funds to buy a house. He could do that. A nice big house, big enough for Shiro Keith, and a cat. And maybe a cat boy. 

Allura texted Shiro about Pidge’s superhero training. Pidge was doing well. She had mastered basic self-defense and started on some offensive moves. Her chosen superhero name was Aphaia (uh-fae-uh). Pidge wanted to keep with Shiro’s Greek mythology theme. What a nerd.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro, Keith, and Lance get a pet kitten. They argue over the name. They finally solve the mystery! 
> 
> *dead body warning*

Shiro’s lap was full of kittens. They were attempting to climb up his shirt. He pet a grey one's head with his finger. It mewed at him. Lance was petting the momma cat. Her eyes were half open and she was purring. The smallest kitten was hiding under the coffee table. She was a rare female orange cat. Krolia sat on a loveseat. The cat owner, Imani, sat next to her. She was a middle-aged woman with muscular arms and a dark skin tone. Shiro didn’t like women, but he could always appreciate some muscular arms. Her wife was in the kitchen making chocolate chip cookies. 

Keith was lying on the ground and looking away from the coffee table. The orange kitten under the table crept towards him. She sniffed his ear. Keith gave Shiro a smirk. The kitten climbed up Keith’s side and rested on top of his chest, looking at his face. She was about the size of Keith’s palm. Keith scratched behind her ears. 

“Hey, honey. You want to come home with me?” Keith whispered. The kitten licked his finger with her tiny tongue. 

“She hates everyone. She’s bit and scratched us more times than we can count,” Imani said. 

“She’s just a little baby,” Lance said. He crawled over and held his finger out for her. She sniffed it.

“Come on, kitty, let’s be friends. I’m a kitty too,” Lance said. She yawned. 

Lance meowed at her. Her ears perked up.

Keith chuckled. 

“She looks so shocked,” Keith said. 

Keith and Lance were awfully close together. Lance was hanging over Keith to touch the kitten. Shiro set the kittens on the floor and sat down next to them. He held out his hand to the kitten. She started backing away. Keith took his hand and held both of their hands next to the kitten. She curled up next to their hands and yawned again. 

“Can we keep her, Shiro? I’ll take good care of her,” Keith begged.

“Of course we can keep her.” 

Shiro marveled at how tiny she was next to his hand.

They brought the kitten back to the apartment. Shiro needed to start looking for a house to move into. He wanted his little girl to have lots of room to run around. Krolia drove back home, but Lance decided to stay the night. Shiro turned the couch into its pull out bed form so there was room for all of them to sit comfortably. They all ended up right beside each other anyway by choice. The kitten was sitting on Keith’s thigh. She was the size of a fat mouse. Keith scratched behind her ear. 

“Hey, Keith? I kinda need to tell you something, buddy,” Lance said. 

Keith looked up. He slowly reached out to take Lance’s hand and kissed it. 

“Oh! That wasn’t what I was talking about.” Keith’s face fell. “But I do like that! I mean, I like you. Like that. But I also need to tell you something else,” Lance explained. 

“Can I kiss you after that?”.

“If you still want to.”

Shiro thought he knew where this was going. 

“So, I’m kind of the Blue Lion,” Lance said. 

“I know.”

Lance gave Shiro the look of one who has been betrayed. 

“I didn’t say anything, I swear,” Shiro said. Keith gave him the same look.

“How did YOU know?”. Shiro looked down at the kitten. The rhythm of her chest rising and falling calmed him down.

“Remember when I said I thought the Blue Lion was the one to save me after I fell from that building? I was right. He started giving me info on the galra, and then he eventually revealed his identity to me. I didn’t want to hide it from you, but….I really needed to get the galra, and I didn’t want you to stop me,” Shiro explained. “How did you know his identity?”. 

“Smell.” Keith set the kitten onto Shiro’s lap. She meowed at Keith. How dare he move her from a comfy spot. Keith launched himself at Lance and held him down. 

“Can I kiss you now?”. Lance squeaked out a yes. Keith pressed their lips together. There was an audible clacking sound that made Shiro wince, but then they were feverishly kissing. Lance kept making tiny whining noises. 

Shiro felt a sharp pain in his leg and looked down to see the ginger fluff ball had bitten him. He picked her off his thigh and let her rest in his right hand. She quickly stopped after realizing it was made of metal and instead curled up to nap again. 

“Keith. Stop hogging him,” Shiro said. Keith pulled back slowly. A trail of saliva was still between them. Both of their lips were red and puffy, but Lance’s were bloody.

“Shit, you’re bleeding. Are you okay,” Keith asked. 

“Never better,” Lance wheezed. 

“Good. Go kiss Shiro, then.”

Lance reached his arms towards him but didn’t move. Shiro handed the kitten to Keith (she meowed a complaint) then pulled Lance into his lap. Shiro stroked Lance’s hair to calm him down from Keith’s frenzy. 

“I can’t believe I get to kiss superheroes,” Lance muttered. Shiro tilted Lance’s head up. Keith and the kitten meowed to each other in the background. Shiro kissed Lance before he could join in on the conversation. His lips were as soft as they looked. His hair and skin were soft, too. Lance pulled away after a while and tucked his head under Shiro’s chin. 

He couldn’t believe he was lucky enough to have two hot boyfriends who were so different. He was worried they wouldn’t get along at first, but once Keith started letting his softness show Lance forgave him for his previous insults, their arguments had turned into teasing. 

“You should be our boyfriend,” Keith announced. 

“I would like that very much,” Lance said. Shiro returned to petting Lance. His hair was so soft, he couldn’t help it. After a few minutes, he felt Lance...vibrating?

“He’s purring,” Keith noted with interest. He reached out and scratched behind Lance’s ear. Lance appeared too happy to move. 

Lance’s phone rang. He stopped purring. Shiro glared at the phone, which had ruined a very nice moment. 

“Hey, Cauliflower. What’s up-”

“Tomorrow night, 9:00 PM sharp at the house,” Shiro heard Kolivan say before hanging up.

“Rude,” Lance said. 

Keith called Axca to get the tea on what was going down. He put the phone on speaker. 

“Lotor gave us some info that led Regris to find where Sendak lives,” Axca said. Shiro privately blessed Axca for being more talkative than the rest of her family. He also wondered why Regris, the thirteen-year-old brat, was in charge of finding Sendak. 

“Thanks. I’ll buy you that perfume thing you wanted,” Keith said. 

“It’s an essential oil,” Axca corrected. 

“Smells like perfume to me. Bye.” Keith hung up.

“I could convince Cauliflower to let your team help,” Lance offered. 

“I don’t think that will be necessary for getting Sendak, but for going into the actual galra facilities that having the rest of my team could be helpful,” Shiro said. 

“Too bad. I know you like me in those leggings,” Keith said. Lance snorted, then covered his mouth. 

“Hah, you snort like a pig,” Keith said. Lance launched himself at Keith. Shiro was relieved to see the kitten a foot away on top of a pillow. She peered suspiciously at him. She hit it off with Keith right away, and Lance was a fellow cat, but Shiro was still suspicious to her. She enjoyed chewing on his prosthetic (like Kosmo) but she was sure about the rest of him just yet. 

The following day, Shiro drove them to Kolivan’s house. Lance held the kitten out for Kosmo to inspect. Kosmo sniffed her head and then ran around in circles. 

“He won’t eat her, will he?” Keith asked. Lance shook his head and set the kitten on the floor. Kosmo stood still and looked at her. He wasn’t completely still since his tail wagging shook his entire body. She walked up to him without hesitation. Kosmo licked her so hard she fell over. She meowed at him. 

“You gotta be gentle, buddy, she’s just a baby,” Lance reminded him. Kosmo lied down. He shuffled closer to the kitten. She tucked herself under Kosmos’ head and yawned, showing off her tiny pink tongue. She curled up in a little kitty donut and closed her eyes. Kosmo was normally a ball of energy, but he stayed perfectly still. 

“Can we call her Ginger?” Lance asked.

“No, her name is Tabasco,” Keith said immediately. 

Lance and Shiro shared a look. This would not stand. 

“Keith, you can’t name a cat Tabasco,” Shiro said. 

“Says the man who named a cat Snail.”

They all went to the meeting room. Kolivan, Thace, and Ulaz were present. Regris lurked in the corner. Kolivan stood, looming over everyone. 

“Lotor mentioned he once visited Sendak’s house. Thace tailed him. We learned that Sendak is not only the leader of the drug deals but also involved in the experimentation when he led us to a galra facility. We found Haggar. Krolia and Axca will not be on this mission. We strike tonight,” Kolivan said. 

Keith slipped his hand into Shiro’s. Shiro reached his other hand out for Lance’s. He never wanted to see Haggar’s face again, but locking her up so she didn’t hurt anyone else was more important. 

Pidge could be helpful for this mission. Hunk could generally helped Pidge fix any issues with her inventions, but he could also do her surveillance job in a pinch, which was perfect for Shiro’s plan. 

“Can another one of Shiro’s team help out?” Lance asked. He used puppy dog eyes on Kolivan. “Please? I met her, she won’t tell anyone about us.”

“You met with another superhero without my permission.” 

“She can turn invisible, and she tends to do things that...aren’t exactly legal, so I’m sure she would fit in here,” Shiro added. 

“Be gay, do crimes,” Lance said. 

“You’re on thin ice, cat. I will accept the superhero’s help because both of you have vouched for her, ” Kolivan said. 

“Awesome, we got the Cauliflower’s permission. Call Pidge and let her know,” Lance said to Shiro. 

Pidge didn’t like calls, but he didn’t want there to be text messages law enforcement could read. She agreed. It occurred to Shiro after he hung up that she would have no way of getting to the house. He texted her his concern but she sent back a winky face, so she must have a way of getting there. Twenty minutes later, Pidge showed up. Hunk was attempting to hide behind her. It wasn’t working. Pidge introduced herself and Hunk. 

“Pidge didn’t explain why she was going here until we got here,” Hunk said,” I don’t want to do crimes. I knew this was going to be something illegal. 9:00 at night, she makes me drive her somewhere, no explanation, scares me half to death, thinking she got into some kind of trouble. I don’t want to go to jail-”

“You’re not going to jail. The police don’t give a fuck about superheroes’ methods, as long as they get the bad guys,” Pidge said. Shiro couldn’t bring himself to reprimand her. It was the truth. 

“Great, another one. You might as well bring in the Princess of Altea,” Thace said. 

Pidge called Allura before anyone could stop her. Pidge spoke so fast she sounded like the chipmunks in that one movie that kept showing up in his recommended section. Kolivan sighed and sat down, accepting his fate. If you wanted one superhero, you got them all. Shiro was glad his suit and mask were in the car already. Allura arrived ten minutes later, which made Shiro suspect she had driven three times the speed limit. To Shiro’s surprise, Allura did not give a single fuck about the illegal acts they were committing. She was truly as chaotic as Coran was but in a different way. The blades all changed into their plain black outfits, including Lance and Pidge. 

“I can’t be recognizable as the blue lion on this mission, since the police are gonna see the footage,” Lance explained. Pidge simply didn’t have a superhero outfit prepared yet. Allura pulled a green hat with a feather on it which resembled Robinhood’s hat out of her purse and convinced Pidge to wear it. Shiro didn’t warn Pidge it would become part of her brand. He had suffered at the hands of spandex and would make Pidge suffer through Robinhood. 

Shiro and Keith changed into their superhero outfits (Keith had a spare set of leggings and a mask in his car). Allura changed in one of the many bathrooms in the house. She left wearing a pink spandex suit with large rhinestones. Shiro knew the gems were actually buttons that provided her with an arsenal of self-defense. The glitter, however, was for decoration. Her mask reminded Shiro of Lances’, although it was pink instead of blue. She also wore matching pink stilettos. He didn’t know why she did that, but he wasn’t about to argue with her. One simply didn’t argue with Allura. Axca and Lotor agreed to care for the kitten while they were gone. They happened to already have cat food in the house (Shiro didn’t ask why). 

Kolivan drove them in an unmarked van. Hunk stayed at the house to do surveillance with Regris. That had taken a lot of convincing. They parked fifteen minutes away from their destination, then walked the rest of the way. They ended up outside a large house in a gated community. It was three times the size of Kolivan’s house. Pidge hacked the security system with ease. Shiro had forgotten no one would see her hat when she was invisible. Thwarted again by Pidge and her invisibility. Thace, Ulaz, and Lance hid nearby as backup. Shiro wished he could fight with Lance on his side for once, but then he would have to explain who he was when the cops saw the footage. They would avoid having the blades in view if possible. Keith picked the lock on the door. Everyone turned on their cams, and Shiro activated his suit’s combat mode. The purple glow of his arm lit up the space in front of him. The front room was filled with all white modern furniture with sharp angles everywhere. Hunk alerted them to the nearest heat signatures. Pidge and Keith went first to scout the area. Shiro was so proud of his sneaky boyfriend. 

He heard screams. Allura ran into the room faster than him. This room wasn’t like the first one. The walls and floor were white tiled and the windows had bars. There was no one in the room but them; the scream belonged to Pidge. Along one wall was a storage rack with glass jars. The first one Shiro saw held a dismembered foot. The second held an eye. An eye with a purple pupil and yellow sclera. He swallowed and looked at Keith to assure himself that he was there. Shiro grabbed around blindly until he found Pidge. He held her hand. He let the others enter the room first. They were still a while away from the nearest heat signature, so it was possible they hadn’t alerted anyone of their presence. 

“Dead body,” Allura warned. Shiro covered Pidge’s eyes. She was still invisible so it looked pretty weird to anyone watching them. Shiro did a quick scan of the body. It was a naked man. His legs and arms were missing, along with his head. There was a freezer next to the wall. Keith opened it. That solved where the man’s limbs and head had gone. Shiro stepped closer and examined the face. He knew that face from pictures. Larry Berbette, the missing man. Shiro had talked to his wife. They moved on to the next room. It was just an office. A normal office. Pidge went to inspect the documents on the desk. They left her to it and continued. The next room was storage. It was filled with gloves, IV bags, knives, and other paraphernalia. 

They went to the next room, where the heat signature was. Shiro froze. It was her. Haggar. She wasn’t cutting someone up, or injecting things, or scribbling down notes. She wasn’t wearing her white lab coat or her hair in a bun. She was sleeping. She was wearing a purple silk pajama set. He almost didn’t recognize her. Shiro expected to feel rage or terror, but instead, he felt nothing but a tightness in his throat. He didn’t think he could speak if he tried. Allura pushed past him and went into action. She pulled handcuffs from his pocket and snapped them around Haggar’s arms before she had even opened her eyes. Then her eyes opened. They weren’t the brown eyes Shiro remembered. They were violet, with yellow scleras. It looked like she had stolen more raccoon DNA from some poor soul and used it on herself. She sat up slowly. Shiro noticed the wrinkles on her face. He had never paid attention to her age before. She looked down at the handcuffs, and then up at Shiro and Allura.

“You will never hurt anyone ever again,” Allura said. 

“I finally found a way for humans to become superhuman. I was going to find a way to put it into the water, to turn everyone superhuman so everyone would know the joy of having power-  
and I would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren’t for you meddling kids,” Haggar said. 

They put her in the van and drove to the police station. 

“Before I go...please tell me my son is alive. He has white hair in a buzz cut, and eyes like mine. He answers to Lotor,” Haggar said, addressing Allura. Allura pursed her lips and turned away. 

“He’s alive,” Shiro choked out. He didn’t know what possessed him to say it. 

“Good. He’s my most successful experiment.” Allura grabbed her and handed her over to the police. Allura gave the police all the information they needed to find the facility and get Sendak, along with the news about Larry Berbette. 

Kolivan drove all of them back to the house. Hunk had hot chocolate waiting for them. Kolivan, Antok, and Thace went upstairs to talk with everyone else. Allura went home. She needed some alone time. Shiro sat next to Pidge, Hunk, Keith, and Lance and drank some hot chocolate. They sat in silence for a while. Pidge didn’t pull out her phone, fiddle with anything, or speak. Hunk and Pidge left soon after finishing their drinks. Lance brought Keith and Shiro up to his room. Lance had a giant bed with canopy curtains. Shiro got in the middle of it and his boys cuddled up to his sides. 

“That gave me the heebie-jeebies,” Lance said. Shiro nodded. He didn’t want to talk about it. 

“We should let Axca and Lotor to keep Tabasco for the night,” Keith said. Shiro didn’t bother arguing about the name. Lance pouted. Shiro gave him a quick kiss. His pout turned into a smile. 

“I was thinking about buying us three a house,” Shiro whispered. 

“You mean seven,” Keith said.

“Do you mean four, because of the kitty?” Lance asked. 

“No. Were taking me, you, Shiro, Tabasco, Kosmo, Axca, and mom,” Keith said. 

“That sounds great, if your mom agrees to it,” Shiro said before Lance could say anything about the kitten not being named Tabasco. 

“Can we take Lotor, too? So Axca can still live with him?” Keith asked. He gave Shiro puppy dog eyes. Lance must have taught him. 

“Okay, if everyone agrees to that,” Shiro said. He was suddenly grateful for the surplus of money he had. Kolivan’s house was way too crowded. He could get an extremely large house to fit everyone. Even Ginger could have her own room if she wanted. Then he had to figure out if he was supposed to be the adult to care for Lotor or if that was going to be Krolia. Maybe it was time to adopt a teenager. 

“I’m so happy we get to have a cat,” Keith said. 

“You get two, actually, including me,” Lance said. Keith sprawled over Shiro and kissed Lance.

“While I absolutely appreciate this, I want to go to sleep,” Shiro said. Keith and Lance both kissed him before settling back down. Shiro fell asleep with the knowledge that Haggar was behind bars and everyone he loved was now safe. He could finally rest, knowing that his future was bright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing this has been the most rewarding project. Please let me know if you guys want an epilogue :)
> 
> Please know I appreciate every single one of you.


End file.
